Second Act

The latest adventure for the Roman sleuth and glamorous heroine of "I, Claudia Busy, busy, busy . . . A house full of actors, Saturnalia coming up, the Guilds to outmanoeuvre, creditors on her back and, ahem, a slight cash-flow problem to deal with; a mother-in-law straining her nerves to breaking point and a certain security policeman, well, disturbing her senses . . . and Claudia doesn't even know about the murderer lurking in her house. Nevertheless, self-interest and a certain weakness for her aristocratic policeman lure her into lending some unasked-for help to his investigation into the Saturnalia Rapist, a mysterious and brutal figure terrorising Rome at this most festive season. Will she manage to unmask him, or will she just get herself into a whole lot of trouble?