This was the first full-length novel featuring John the Eunuch (whom I for one had already met in short stories; see The Mammoth Book of Historical Whodunnits and The Mammoth Book of Historical Detectives) and, as Constantinople/Byzantium under Justinian and Theodora is one of my favourite places and periods (if I had a time-machine I would head straight for Theodora) this series is very much made to measure. All right, Theodora is depicted as a real bitch, which I don't believe she was - though no doubt she could be on occasion.
In One For Sorrow, a beautiful bull-leaper from Crete performs in the Circus (Were there really still beautiful bull-leapers in Crete 2,000 years after the destruction of Knossos? I love to think that there were) and she and her mother not only bring back memories to John of happier times before he was captured and castrated, but also become involved in the death of John's friend Leukos; as does another visitor to the City, Thomas, a knight from Arthur's court in far-away Bretania. And then there is Ahasueras, mysterious soothsayer who has recently arrived from Antioch and who was apparently the last person to see Leukos alive.
Leukos' body, though, was found in an alley outside a brothel (the best in the City!) run by an Egyptian known as Madam who turns out to be another old acquaintance of John's.
Then one of Madam's girls is murdered. Is there a connection?
John the Eunuch, Justinian's Lord Chamberlain (and clandestine worshipper of Mithras in a Christian court) has his hands full here.
First class HF.
MBG
