Following the last post where I celebrated a (rather dubious) review of Murder In Absentia, this weekend was graced by two great reviews.

The first from TJ Green:

I’d heard lots of good things about this book, and I’m pleased to say I was not disappointed!
This book is a detective story set in ancient Rome, but there’s a twist – magic is part of everyday life. When a young man is found dead by what seems to be a forbidden rite, Felix is hired to investigate.
Felix is an engaging and dogged investigator, with a lot of cheek and wit. I loved the mix of magic and the real which was well executed. The world is fully realised, and although some detective stories can plod as we follow the protagonist through the investigation, this didn’t. There was plenty of variety, a chance to explore other places, and other sub-plots which fleshed out the story. There’s also some intriguing back story which I’m sure will be expanded on, along with some very interesting characters.
Highly recommended, and I’m looking forward to reading the next one. I’ll have to check out some of the short stories too.

The next is from Mary Woldering:

Imagine a place called Egretia which is quite like ancient Imperial Rome. Now imagine an important politician’s son has been found dead in his bed. The youth’s body reveals his death was of a questionable nature. In fact, there is evidence that arcane magic of the darkest order brought about the young man’s demise. Not wanting to have this event investigated through normal means (because the scandal could ruin his career) the man reaches out to one Felix, known as “The Fox”. Felix was an Incantatore – minimally trained magic user who left the study when his own family issues arose.
With all the skill of a modern-day crime scene investigator and a little bit of Sherlock Holmes thrown in, Felix follows leads, journeys to mystical places and studies forbidden manuscripts. He fights pirates and sorcerers as well as a few common street thugs and wrestles with the charms of beautiful women as he solves the crime.
Author Assaph Mehr masterfully blends well researched historical Roman culture in a fantasy setting with mystery, magic, action and suspense. Murder in Absentia is winner of several Indie Author awards. The title description says Felix the Fox Book 1. I am eagerly waiting for Book 2.

So, yeah – pretty happy with Karma this week 🙂

(ps. Don’t forget about Brains To Books Cyber Con this coming weekend! There’ll be some wonderful stuff all around – with some contributions from Felix and me 😉