"Roman Blood"

Roman Blood: A Novel of Ancient Rome (Steven Saylor)

This is a street-level detective story set in ancient Rome. If that sounds like the SPQR series, well, they're rather alike; I'm afraid this novel has spoiled me, though, mostly because it's just very well written. What leaps out the most is Saylor's talent at creating memorable, personality-filled characters (the cranky oddballness of Cicero is a particular treat), but even mundane actions like the sun rising on what promises to be a hot day stuck with me as the author describes it like a thief sneaking over his roof tiles.
So I recommend this one - not just for history nerds, although they may get slightly more out of it (the case is about the murder of Sextus Roscius, which I recognized from the Master of Rome series). I don't think that being unfamiliar with the setting would be much of an impediment, and I'd suggest at least checking it out of the library.

Grade: A