Fans pick 100 books like The Silver Pigs

Just like the Falco mysteries showed me that you could have fun with your historical detectives, this book showed me that there’s more drama in Ancient Roman history than in any daytime soap opera, and this novelisation of Marius and Sulla packs a lot more of an emotional punch than any textbook ever could. 

I don’t know enough about Marius and Sulla to say how much poetic license the author took, but this really does read as a seamless and in-depth exploration of the bloody power struggles between two very different but equally ambitious men in the time of the Roman Republic.   

The whole series is fantastic!

This has to be one of–if not the–greatest single book I’ve ever read about war in the ancient world. I read the first ten pages, and I was interested; then I read the next forty, and I was utterly hooked. As a description of an elite military force holding out against overwhelming odds it fascinated me, but as a human story of the way Spartan society worked to produce those warriors, imbued with heroism, honour and humour in equal amounts I was simply blown away.

It’s fair to say that this book has been my greatest influence all the way through my writing career. I dare anyone with an interest in the genre to read this and then deny that they were informed, entertained, and (perhaps darkly) amused by the story and its payoff. This is God-tier writing, plain and simple, and, not for no reason, the closest thing the… show more.

I admit it: I underestimated Flavia de Luce.

She is 11 years old, self-schooled, and lives outside a small English town in the 1950s. She is overlooked and underestimated by everyone. Deep inside, I’m still 11 years old, underestimated, and overlooked. I had an insatiable desire to learn about my environment, and I often saw things others didn’t. Flavia also reminds me of my childhood living in the country in the 1980s. I ran unchecked, safe, and constantly delighted in discovering new things about my corner of the world. I wince at the de Luce family politics. I cheer Flavia’s investigations and her fearlessness. I want nothing more than to stay in Flavia’s 11-year-old world forever. She is the kick-ass kid I wanted to be. 

I loved this book because the story and characters in it were so fascinating, and I learned a lot about the history of the time and how ordinary people lived. Although the book is a hefty tome, I really didn’t want it to end. I couldn’t put it down and read the whole book in a couple of days. I was so delighted when Ken Follett wrote a sequel.

I loved how Follett weaved the stories of ordinary people around what was happening with the kings and queens of the day. I also loved how he created strong female characters in an era where you would not expect to find such characters. Pillars of the Earth inspired me to write historical fiction and lit a passion for history within me.

This book made me fall in love with ancient Egypt. It might not take place in the past but the findings of the main characters take you straight back in time. The descriptions of the places and the way of living in ancient Egypt-Ethiopia-The blue Nile, easily trigger your imagination and you find yourself creating pictures in your head. Also, the adventure is breathtaking. 

If you love ancient Rome and a good murder mystery then this is the book you should read. The author has studied history and is considered an expert on ancient Rome, and judging by how accurate his descriptions are, it must be true. I am in love with this book (and the rest of the Roma Sub Rosa series) because it made me feel like I was walking down the Appian Way myself. Plus the mystery is so well given. A true must if you are in love with ancient Rome. 

I just did a reread of this timed for the release of the seventh in the series, and every time I read it I’m blown away by the genius way Thomas deconstructs the Holmes mythology and then puts it back together again in a new, fascinating, plausible, entirely satisfying way.

In this retelling Holmes is not only a woman, but one who has been exiled from society for—well, behaving like Sherlock Holmes. The characterization—not only of Holmes, but also of her family, associates, and enemies—is rich and believable, and the mysteries are complex and gripping.

The whole series explores the fundamental injustice of women being treated differently from men, as well as the many ingenious ways women find to escape, avoid, and subvert that norm—and the price they pay.

An unlikely pair fight crime and corruption in second-century Britain. 

Meet Ruso and Tilla. He’s an educated, idealistic Roman serving as an army medic with the 20th Legion. She’s a feisty, pragmatic Briton and former slave. Together they fight injustice, solve murders, and share an endearing talent for getting themselves into awkward pickles by misconstruing each other’s intentions. 

In Terra Incognito, Ruso travels to the British frontier, where he is the outsider and Tilla the one who understands the rules. Can a tough Roman soldier learn to take advice from his barbarian housekeeper? Can he trust her not to betray him or run away to rejoin her people? Tilla proves trustworthy, and a great crime-fighting partnership is formed.

If you love underdog stories, this one offers a double helping. First, Inspector Witherspoon’s career is threatened by ambitious and unscrupulous men who want to see him fail. Secondly, his household staff are the real heroes, tracking down clues that they cleverly feed to their unsuspecting employer to help him solve murder cases. Each staff member has unique methods for uncovering information, and together they make an effective team. I chuckle at their close calls as they scramble to hide their secret sleuthing from the inspector and the rest of the police force.  

This first novel gives the backstory: what’s at stake for the inspector and his household, plus why his housekeeper (Mrs. Jeffries) is a plausible and capable sleuth.

So, just how bad was Nero? After 2000 years, it’s a question that we’ll probably never be able to answer with any certainty.

This non-fiction book makes a fantastic effort at trying to dig through a lot of the biases against Nero to find a more balanced view. While there’s no question that Nero was a monster in his later reign (certainly by our modern standards), it’s often forgotten that he started off incredibly popular with the common people, while his disregard for established traditions made him a lot of enemies amongst the patricians.

And, of course, it’s those patricians who got the final say when it came to writing down his history. It's a really fascinating read!