The Books

The Ephialtes Affair

Only one man can save the democracy at Athens. Nicolaos, the unknown and insignificant son of a minor sculptor, must solve the murder of the leading politician Ephialtes, shot through the heart by an arrow, before his death tears apart the city in civil war.
Of course, it would be easier if Pericles wasn’t looking over his shoulder, critiquing his every move.
And it would be nice if the clever and beautiful Diotima wasn’t a virgin priestess, and a dab hand with a bow and arrow.
He really wishes her mother wasn’t a seductive courtesan, and the mistress of Ephialtes.
He’d prefer not to go near Pythax, the brutally tough chief of the city guard.
And if only his twelve year old brother Socrates would stop offering helpful suggestions.
It would definitely help if the main suspect weren’t Xanthippus, a leading conservative and, worst of all, Pericles’ father.
Meanwhile the witnesses to the plot are being killed one by one. Can Nicolaos follow the trail to whoever is behind it all before the evidence is wiped out?

The Magnesia Sanction

Nicolaos is called on to investigate the bizarre disappearance of Borus, the High Priest of Artemis, who everyone agrees is the friendliest man alive, loved by all, if you don’t count the men who assaulted his wife, murdered his servants and kidnapped him.
That should be easy for a man of his talents, except he’s being watched closely by Barzanes, a sinister Persian with a tendency to torture people.
He could deal with Barzanes, if only he weren’t an involuntary guest of Themistocles, the Athenian traitor and strategic genius, who is now a Satrap of the Great King.
Even that would not daunt him, except his girlfriend Diotima has caught him walking out of a brothel, hand in hand with a mysterious and beautiful slave girl.
Oh dear.
And now Diotima is in mortal danger.
Things get a little tricky when he discovers plans for a third Persian invasion of Greece, a disaster that he must be stopped at all costs, even if it means the life of his Diotima.
Can Nicolaos save Diotima (who is furious with him) , solve the crime, and clear up any other little problems, such as the immanent destruction of his homeland?
Probably not, but he’s going to try.

Sacred Games

It’s the Olympics of 460 B.C. Nicolaos and Diotima are there to cheer on his friend Timodemos, competing in the Pankration. The Pankration is the most brutal of the Olympic sports, a martial arts event in which the only rules are no gouging eyes and no biting. Everything else goes, and contestants regularly die or are crippled for life.
Timodemos is doing well. In fact, he’s doing almost too well, his opponents are falling before him. When Timo faces a huge Spartan with bulging muscles, the Spartan dies before the fight has barely begun. Poison is found in the cup of wine he drank before the match. Howls of protest force an investigation. The main suspect is Timodemos of Athens. Were his other opponents poisoned too? Is that the reason Timodemos has been winning?
The Spartans are outraged. The fragile peace between Athens and Sparta is strained to the utmost. War between the two strongest powers in Hellas could break out at any moment, a war which Athens would lose. Meanwhile Timodemos is under guard, awaiting execution for cheating in the Sacred Games.
Can Nicolaos save his friend and avert a devastating war? The only way is to find out who is behind the plot, and why.