Gangster – The Unseen Library

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (Trade Paperback – 9 April 2024)

Series: Flavia Albia – Book 12

Length: 380 pages

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

Those in the mood for a clever murder mystery in ancient Rome look no further than the 2024 entry in the long-running Flavia Albia series with Death on the Tiber by Lindsey Davis.

I am a huge fan of historical fiction, and one of my favourite ongoing historical series is the outstanding Flavia Albia books by veteran author Lindsey Davis. The Flavia Albia books, which are a sequel series to the author’s long-running Falco series, follow a determined private investigator in ancient Rome who takes on a range of complex cases and murder investigations, often encountering many of the city’s over-the-top inhabitants. I have had an amazing time reading this series over the years, including The Third Nero, Pandora’s Boy, A Capitol Death, The Grove of the Caesars (one of my favourite books of 2020), A Comedy of Terrors, Desperate Undertakings (one of my favourite books of 2022) and Fatal Legacy. As such, I try to read every new Flavia Albia book that comes out, and after accidently avoiding it for much of 2024, I recently finished off the 12^th book in the series, Death on the Tiber.

Plot Synopsis:

Rome is in chaos. The empire of a mobster chief is falling apart following his death. Rivals, fearsome relatives and associates are taking up position to vie for the spoils.

With hideous murders in the streets of Rome, a lone female traveller arrives with an agenda of her own. But when her corpse is dragged out of the river bearing signs of foul play, Flavia Alba is drawn in, concerned about her fellow Briton’s fate.

Alba’s quest to find the killer becomes deeply personal when she discovers a man at the centre of the plot is an old adversary of hers. Will she be obsessed by revenge? Can she let the past go, or will it consume her?

Death on the Tiber was a great addition to the Flavia Albia series that features its own distinctive crimes, while also cleverly tying into several of the author’s previous Falco and Flavia Albia books.

The plot of Death on the Tiber is very compelling, as the protagonist, Flavia Albia, finds herself drawn into the investigation of a murdered tourist pulled out of the Tiber. However, the case becomes personal for Albia when she discovers the victim’s connection to the gangster Florius, an old foe of her fathers, who years before committed unspeakable evils against Albia and who may have finally returned to Rome. Determined to finally hunt down Florius and make him pay for his crimes, Albia begins her investigation and soon finds herself embroiled in a deadly gang war that could tip the balance of Rome’s underworld. Forced to compete with a range of interested parties, including her own vengeful father and uncle, the Roman military and several gangsters and their families who Flavia has previously encountered through her work, the protagonist slowly begins to piece together the events that lead to the victim’s death and the connection to her quarry’s current location.

This proved to be a highly personal and complex entry in the series, and one that I felt served as a love letter to the author’s prior works. A huge range of characters from previous Flavia Albia novels, as well as major figures from the preceding Falco books, are featured throughout Death on the Tiber as the author takes the opportunity to tie together a range of ongoing storylines related to a major antagonist of the Falco books. This allows for quite a fascinating read, especially for those readers familiar with the previous works, and it was awesome to see Davis bring together a compelling cast of returning figures.

The plot moves in some interesting directions as the book nears the end, and Davis adds in a range of compelling layers to the case, including disgruntled mobster wives, a big gang war for the control of Rome, and alternating bands of Roman officials seeking to disrupt events. The conclusion for the book proves to be very emotionally charged, especially as the protagonist comes face to face with her biggest monster and finally gets some closure. The main mystery of Death on the Tiber is also extremely well written and utilised, and Davis does an excellent job tying in a lot of the novel’s leads and investigative plots into the main hunt for the returning Florius. While the reveal of the ultimate culprit behind the killing isn’t especially surprising, the way in which Davis addresses their fate is particularly impressive, and it leads to a very fun final moment in the book. I loved this last little twist, which I honestly think tied the book together very nicely, and it certainly was one of the moments that has stuck with me since finishing Death on the Tiber off.

This ended up being another strong Flavia Albia book as Davis continues to utilise her trademark style in Death on the Tiber. Focused primarily through the sarcastic and cynical Flavia, Death in the Tiber evolves into a twisty hunt for answers, that brings together mystery, criminal intrigue, and the protagonist’s various personal connections. Davis has a very compelling way of writing her stories, and her examinations of Rome through the protagonist’s eyes are often light-hearted, sarcastic, and applying modern mentalities to the ancient society. This results in an impressive read, especially as Davis lays down an exceptional combination mystery and revenge-focussed narrative. While I really enjoyed how well Davis revisited multiple previous books from both the Falco and Flavia Albia series, it does mean that readers do need a bit of pre-knowledge of these earlier works to fully appreciate Death on the Tiber’s plot. Davis does provide some much-needed context at times, which will allow some new or forgetful readers to enjoy this book, but I personally think that people should have at least read the last few Flavia Albia books before Death on the Tiber to really get this book.

Despite the series’ general comedic vibe, Death on the Tiber gets very dark at times, especially as the protagonist is forced to revisit her traumatic history. The author does an excellent job of diving into Flavia’s trauma and pain on the subject, and it was nice for this compelling protagonist to finally get some closure. Davis nicely balances some of these darker moments by including an extensive cast of eccentric characters, many of whom are continuing their storylines from both the Falco and Flavia Albia series, and there are some very fun moments scattered throughout Death on the Tiber as a result. This includes a fun competitiveness with Flavia’s father, Falco, a dive into some other important parental figures in her life, as well as her very strong relationship with her supportive and relentless husband. I personally loved the return of all the various major gangsters Flavia has dealt with over the years, and it was fun to see her try to investigate them after prior experiences. However, two of Flavia’s female relatives end up stealing the show in Death on the Tiber, especially at the end where they showed an ironic sense of justice. An overall great extended cast that served to connect this book to the larger series in some outstanding ways.

With Lindsey Davis’s typical impressive writing and a cool plot laden with mystery and criminal intrigue, Death on the Tiber was an amazing entry in one of my favourite historical fiction series. Entertaining, addictive and very moving, Death on the Tiber had me hooked from the very beginning, and I wish I’d read it sooner. I look forward to continuing the Flavia Albia series this year, especially as Davis has a cool book coming out in April set around the ruins of Pompei with There Will Be Bodies.

Amazon

36 Streets Cover

Publisher: Titan Books (Trade Paperback – 19 January 2022)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 433 pages

My Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars

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One of the most unique reads by an Australian in 2022 had to be the action-packed and deeply compelling cyberpunk thriller, 36 Streets by new-to-me author T. R. Napper.

Plot Synopsis:

Altered Carbon and The Wind-Up Girl meet Apocalypse Now in this fast-paced, intelligent, action-driven cyberpunk, probing questions of memory, identity and the power of narratives.

Lin ‘The Silent One’ Vu is a gangster and sometime private investigator living in Chinese-occupied Hanoi, in the steaming, paranoid alleyways of the 36 Streets. Born in Vietnam, raised in Australia, everywhere she is an outsider.

Through grit and courage Lin has carved a place for herself in the Vietnamese underworld where Hanoi’s crime boss, Bao Nguyen, is training her to fight and lead. Bao drives her hard; on the streets there are no second chances. Meanwhile the people of Hanoi are succumbing to Fat Victory – a dangerously addictive immersive simulation of the US-Vietnam war.

When an Englishman comes to Hanoi on the trail of his friend’s murderer, Lin’s life is turned upside down. She is drawn into the grand conspiracies of the neon gods – of regimes and mega-corporations – as they unleash dangerous new technologies.

Lin must confront the immutable moral calculus of unjust wars. She must choose: family, country, or gang. Blood, truth, or redemption. No choice is easy on the 36 Streets.

36 Streets was a particularly unique and ultra-exciting novel that tells a powerful and memorable story of intrigue, conspiracy and the various families you make in life. Set in a futuristic Hanoi in the midst of a Chinese occupation, 36 Streets begins as a cyberpunk gangster tale following Lin Vu, a deadly enforcer and fighter for a Vietnamese street gang. Raised in Australia before being deported to Vietnam, Lin is a damaged and angry figure who has found purpose as an ultra-violent gang member, and is somewhat content with her current life of drinking, drugs and womanising. However, her latest job for a mysterious English executive leads her and her gang into the middle of a dark conspiracy that could influence the entirety of Vietnam and which pits her against a deadly rival gang, the Chinese government, and a corrupt corporation.

Napper tells a fast-paced and compelling story in 36 Streets, and I was constantly intrigued where the plot was going, especially as the author blends interesting character work, futuristic cyberpunk elements and an intense conspiracy storyline to create a great overall read. Lin’s attempt to find answers and discover the full and terrible truth of the events she has been dragged into serves as an outstanding base to the story, and the author throws in some great twists and swerves as the story continues. Brutal and sharp action scenes are interspersed with a compelling street-based investigation, as well as fascinating showcases of the cool cyberpunk technology, including a trippy video game that shows an alternate version of the Vietnam War, all of which creates a distinctive and dark overarching tone for the book, which I felt matched the compelling conspiracy story extremely well. Napper further adds to intensity of the plot by diving into his complex protagonist’s past, which includes unique family dynamics, rejection from every country she has ever lived in, and some of the most brutal training sequences you are ever likely to find in a fiction novel. Everything comes together in a shocking and bloody conclusion, which leaves the reader satisfied, saddened, and wanting more.

There are so many great elements to this book that I could talk about, but a true highlight of 36 Streets is Napper’s intriguing examination and portrayal of the soul and culture of Vietnam, as well as the beautiful historic city of Hanoi. The intrepidness and distinctive personality of the Vietnamese people are on full display throughout the entirety of 36 Streets’ story, and the author spends substantial time exploring the history and culture of Vietnam through his complex characters. This dive into the Vietnamese people and their mindset, actually becomes a key and intriguing part of the book’s overall plot, and I loved how the conspiracy that Lin is investigating ties into elements of the Vietnam War and country’s inbuilt ability to resist. I was also quite impressed with Napper’s outstanding portrayal of his version of Hanoi, especially as he perfectly blended the new cyberpunk elements of his story with the distinctive historical elements and culture of the city that exists today. Another intriguing setting element he included was the fictional future Chinese invasion and occupation of Hanoi and greater Vietnam, especially as it results in a second Vietnamese War, with a new Vietcong now fighting and beating the Chinese from the other side of the country. All of these outstanding elements, including the unique futuristic setting and the powerful examinations of Vietnam and its people, add a memorable impact to the larger story, and I felt that this book benefited greatly from Napper highlighting the Vietnamese people in this way.

I honestly was not sure how 36 Streets was going to turn out when I initially started reading it. However, after enjoying everything about its cool story, fantastic insights and brilliant character work, I have to say that this was a pretty amazing read and one that I am very glad I grabbed a copy of. Australian author T. R. Napper has created something very impressive with 36 Streets and I cannot emphasise what a powerful and compelling book this turned out to be, especially with its Vietnamese setting and fantastic cyberpunk inclusions. Highly recommended!

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