I love stories set in ancient Rome. Usually these are murder mysteries, and I’m delighted that Ancient Roman Detective is a genre, but I’d actually just like a novel that happens to take place in Rome.
Feast of Sorrow by Crystal King tells the story of a kitchen slave, Thrasius, and his owner, the gourmand Apicius. Thrasius is no mere cook, though, and under Apicius’ command, Thracius plans and caters elaborate parties, becoming a master chef as as Apicius tries to become Caesar’s arbiter of taste. But, as Apicius comes closer to his goal of becoming Caesar’s gourmand, they get closer to the machinations of the Julio-Claudians and DO YOU SEE HOW GREAT THIS BOOK IS?
I love historical fiction, but I don’t really like when historical fiction characters espouse modern attitudes and beliefsm instead of what would make the most sense for their time. A lady-in-waiting at the Tudor court isn’t likely to bathe daily, for example, but I can go with that as a character quirk. It strains my credibility when she also plans to marry only for love, thinks peasants are just as good as lords, thinks the four humours are silly and the handwashing will stop the spread of the flu, and wishes corsets would go out of style and jeans would come in, etc., etc.
But everyone in Feast of Sorrow behaves with solid Roman values. Aulia turns from loving mother to dutiful Roman matron when the situation demands it, and Apicius takes his responsibilities as paterfamilias very seriously. Thrasius accepts the Roman system of slavery, and he’s pretty blase about the sexual abuse and violence that any paterfamilias is entitled to, which makes it even more heartbreaking.
Loads of kitchen and dining details make it into the book, but the descriptions never slow down the action. I mean, I did want to see what horrible things Livia and Sejanus and the rest were up to, but I also really enjoyed the morning scenes of patron Apicius greeting his clients, or Thrasius noticing the shadow guests tailing the important, invited dinner guests.
It’s not a spoiler if I tell you something that happened 2000 years ago, is it? Ok, so a lot of the novel hinges on Sejanus, and you know that once everything finally catches up with him, he gets one of the grislier Roman punishments. About five minutes before I got there, I suddenly remembered my Suetonius and I realized the terrible thing that was about to happen to his children. Roman attitudes, all the way though.
[…] a bit slowly, or maybe I was just disappointed that it wasn’t set in ancient Rome like Feast of Sorrow. (I didn’t read the NetGalley blurb, I just saw by Crystal King and immediately requested […]
[…] Good choice for fans of The Throne of Caesar. Foreign Bodies, and Feast of Sorrow. […]
I loved this historical fiction novel as well. There was a pdf cookbook available for me when I read it with some great recipes.
This one was very good (but while some things made me hungry, others sounded gross)!
Davida Chazan recently posted…TCL’s #TopTenTuesday for November 23, 2021 – Characters I’d Love an Update On.
[…] other Roman fiction try The Throne of Caesar, Brides of Rome, Feast of Sorrow, or start up with the Marcus Corvinus or SPQR mystery […]
[…] Livia is the evil mastermind behind a lot of the plot in I, Claudius. Historical evidence is mostly that Livia had too much power over her husband for Roman tastes, not that she was a cold-blooded serial poisoner. The closest historical evidence for Livia as murderous mastermind is that Tacitus, writing about a generation after Livia’s death, suggests she and Tiberius may have had a hand in Agrippa Postumus’ death, but provides no method or evidence, other than the motive that Postumus’ death cleared the way for Tiberius to be Augustus’ main heir. Certainly several other relatives and adopted heirs were in line before Tiberius, but there was no shortage of other enemies in Rome and the was a high mortality rate for young children and for Roman soldiers. Graves doesn’t really make up a whole story, the events in I,Claudius happen in the historical order, using the historical figures. What he adds is the motivation and the secrets behind the scenes. This is my favorite feeling in historical fiction — also what I love in Philippa Gregory’s Tudor series and Crystal King’s Feast of Sorrow. […]
[…] more Roman fiction, there’s the rest of the Libertus series, as well as Feast of Sorrow, The Throne of Caesar, and Brides of […]
[…] Feast of Sorrow by Crystal King tells the story of a cook, Thrasius, in the kitchens of Marcus Gavius Apicius. Thracius plans and caters elaborate parties, as Apicius tries to become Rome’s arbiter of taste, which brings them closer to the Julio-Claudian intrigue. This is another really well-researched story, including some wonderful Roman details, and some unappetizing recipes. A lot of this is set in kitchens and banquets, but the novel’s events tie in with historical accounts. (Full review of Feast of Sorrow is here.) […]