Dog-Headed Death: A Gaius Hesperian Mystery

Gaius Hesperian #1

by Ray Faraday Nelson

A Gaius Hesperian historical mystery novel! A wealthy shipping magnate is murdered in his Egyptian mansion; several members of his family, including a son and daughter and his new young wife, had the means, a motive, and the opportunity. But this isn't a contemporary tale—rather, it is set in the first century A.D., in Alexandrian Egypt, at a time when the upstart Christian believers are battling the established religion of Mother Isis/Father Osiris-Serapis for converts. Enter Centurion Gaius Hespedan, a reflective and compassionate member of Emperor Nero's palace guard who, with his lieutenants and soldiers, is sent to Alexandria to solve the crime and apprehend the murderer. Carefully researched for period detail, Dog-Headed Death includes members of the extended Memnon family, including the beautiful slave girl Sabella, the clown dwarfs Suchos, Horus, and Bubo; a Parthian spy; the Centurion's nemesis, Librarius Daphnis; the Apostle Mark; Bishop Annianus; and many other characters both colorful and authentic. With a daring and romantic sub-plot, this is a fine historical novel as well as a fast-paced mystery!

Genres: Mystery

184 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1989

About the author

Aka Jeffrey Lord (house pseudonym)

Radell Faraday "Ray" Nelson is an American science fiction author and cartoonist most famous for his 1963 short story "Eight O'Clock in the Morning", which was later used by John Carpenter as the basis for his 1988 film They Live.

Reviews

[Peter M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ancient CSI! I loved it

I really liked how the narrative split between the perspectives of the characters. I also loved how descriptive everything was