Medicus

A Novel of the Roman Empire

By: Ruth Downie

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

Gaius Petrius Ruso is a divorced and down-on-his-luck army doctor who has made the rash decision to seek his fortune in an inclement outpost of the Roman Empire, namely Britannia. His arrival in Deva (more commonly known today as Chester, England) does little to improve his mood, and after a 36-hour shift at the army hospital, he succumbs to a moment of weakness and rescues an injured slave girl, Tilla, from the hands of her abusive owner.

Now he has a new problem: a slave who won't talk and can't cook, and drags trouble in her wake. Before he knows it, Ruso is caught in the middle of an investigation into the deaths of prostitutes working out of the local bar.

A few years earlier, after he rescued Emperor Trajan from an earthquake in Antioch, Ruso seemed headed for glory: now he's living among heathens in a vermin-infested bachelor pad and must summon all his forensic knowledge to find a killer who may be after him next.

Who are the true barbarians, the conquered or the conquerors? It's up to Ruso (certainly the most likeable sleuth to come out of the Roman Empire) to discover the truth. With a gift for comic timing and historic detail, Ruth Downie has conjured an ancient world as raucous and real as our own.

©2007 Ruth Downie (P)2007 Tantor Media Inc.

Critic reviews

"Downie's auspicious debut sparkles with beguiling characters and a vividly imagined evocation of a hazy frontier." (Publishers Weekly)
"Fans of Alexander McCall Smith will delight in this series debut set in Roman-occupied Britain and featuring wry army doctor Gaius Petreius Ruso." (Booklist)

A Roman Doctor In Britain

Enjoyable start to this mystery series set in Roman-occupied Britain. But I didn't feel immersed in the place and time (not like I do, for instance, in the historical novels of David Liss). Perhaps the next novels in the series will give me more of the feeling of being in the time period. This novel was interesting and I got caught up in the mystery. Simon Vance is a great narrator and doesn't disappoint here - I don't think I would have liked the book as well if I was reading it instead.

just no

never picked up and so couldn't get into it. A wonderful idea but it didn't jell

Delightful and slightly askew

A lovely listen blessed with the feeling that everyday heroes are the salt of the earth.

So sad it's over

You know that feeling when you get to the end of a book and you loved the story and the narrator so much that your next listen is something you ... put off for a while? It feels like nothing will be as enjoyable.
I loved everything about this book. I truly enjoy historical fiction and a lot of what Ruth Downie depicts in this novel was surprising. Sometimes, I felt like I was reading a contemporary novel because of the sophistication of medical practices and governmental bureaucracy, not to mention the use of "tablets." The characters are very relatable and the humor mixed into this murder mystery of the Roman Empire makes the book enjoyable for a wide audience.
Simon Vance is an extraordinary narrator, nuancing the voices of his characters with personality as well as familiarity.
Give it a listen. It will be time well spent.

Mystery in Roman era London

In Medicus by Ruth Downie, Gaius Petrius Ruso has found himself in the miserable Britannia, the farthest outpost of the Roman Empire, in a step down from his promising career as an army medic. After working a 36-hour shift, he comes upon a man abusing his slave, who has a broken arm and for whom the man has no intention of spending the money to get medical attention. Being exhausted and angry at the callousness of the owner, Ruso offers to buy the young woman from him and thus ends up the owner of a slave, whom he calls Tilla. It takes a long time to nurse Tilla back to health, especially because she strongly desires to die in order to join her family in the afterlife.

In the meantime, the body of a young woman gets fished out of the river, and she has been strangled and had her hair shaved off. After a few days she gets identified as a slave belonging to the comparatively high-class brothel owner who ran away after only ten days in servitude. This takes Ruso into the world of slavery and in particular that of slave prostitutes. The appearance of a second dead slave from the same brothel just adds to the intrigue.

This book was very well written. It started off a bit slowly, but it didn’t take long for me to get involved in the book. The lives of the medic and his slave, as well as the depictions of the primitive medical conditions, become very real. One thing that influenced my decision to purchase this book was the comment that it is unlike the Falco series by Davina Porter. I listened to a number of those books, but they grew tiresome. My mother, who shares my listening tastes, did not like the Falco books at all. But I think she will really enjoy Medicus.

Simon Vance narrates this book and makes it come to life. I have heard his books before and always enjoyed them. He does an outstanding performance.

I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone, not just those who are fans of historical fiction. It is one that will appeal to anyone who likes mystery or history. The book also has an interesting epilogue about the known history of the Roman Empire in England, and it also draws a powerful comparison between the legal slaves forced into prostitution and the large trafficking in women that goes on today. It satisfied me and will satisfy plenty of others. I give this book four stars.

well written

I really enjoyed it. I couldn't stop listening. Very interesting and well-written historical fiction set in Britain.

Great story worth a look or listen.

This was a great book. I love history and I love mystery and this book combined both well. I’ve always found the Roman time period fascinating and I enjoyed the characters and British frontier setting. I’m no expert in the Roman civilization but I thought the historical elements were well researched and believable. Worth a look or listen.

Enjoyed it!

Very interesting, and of course you can't go wrong with Simon. Give it a shot!

Reminds me very much of McCammon's Mathew Corbett series

Very smooth & moves nicely throughout. Narrator is great, too. I thought it portrayed Britain just before Hadrian's Wall very nicely, without overdoing the historical details. Not that I don't like some of that. Review by Rick

Facinating!! Performance outstanding!

Loved every intriguing word. Can not wait to listen to the next. The performance was wonderful.