Death Ex Machina: 5 (An Athenian Mystery) - Softcover

Praise for Death Ex Machina

"Corby blends the history lesson so well into the story that you won't even need a spoonful of sugar."
--San Jose Mercury News

"This fifth mystery in the series moves from shock to shock, each one amplified by the fact that every prank and accident is painted on the scenery wall onstage almost immediately afterward. Corby is adept at delineating ancient Greece without sounding professorial. This works on every level."
--Booklist, Starred Review

"Corby again manages to effortlessly integrate laugh-out-loud humor into a fairly clued puzzle."
--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Exciting, intriguing and erotic."
--Gumshoe Review

"Death Ex Machina is an entertaining entry in this historical series. The characters are nicely developed, and Nicolaos and Diotma are engaging as a couple. There is a lot of history here, much of it seamlessly introduced into the story and supportive of the time and place."
--Mysterious Reviews

"Peppered with fascinating details about theater history and the Hellenic origins of theatrical lore. Corby's sixth series outing will please fans of mysteries set in ancient Greece, especially those written by Anna Apostolou and Marilyn Todd."
--Library Journal

"Corby knows how to create a page-turning mystery, and he certainly knows how to infuse his encyclopedic knowledge of ancient Greece seamlessly into his story."
--Kittling Books

Praise for Gary Corby's Athenian Mysteries

"Corby serves up a bubbly cocktail of clear history, contemporary wit, and heart-stopping action."
--Booklist, Starred Review

"Corby integrates the political intrigue of the day with fair-play plotting and welcome doses of humor. Fans of Steven Saylor's Gordianus novels will be enthralled."
--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Gary Corby has managed an unlikely feat with his series . . . he's written mysteries that combine funny characters and intriguing crimes with accurate history . . . The Marathon Conspiracy is never dull . . . The escapades of the detective will keep readers laughing, while the history lesson will leave them feeling a little bit smarter."
--Shelf Awareness

"Every new volume further highlights the tricky thing Corby so consistently manages to create: comedic mysteries that still have heft . . . In the manner of what Lindsey Davis and David Wishart give readers for ancient Rome, Corby presents an ancient Greek world that's vibrantly, gawkishly alive."
--Open Letters Monthly

"A fast-paced, enjoyable, murder mystery that will make readers laugh and think in equal measure."
--The Sydney Morning Herald

"Corby has not only made Greek history accessible--he's made it first-rate entertainment."
--Kelli Stanley, award-winning author of City of Dragons

From the Hardcover edition.

A theatrical murder sends classical Athens into an uproar

Athens, 459 BC: It’s the time of the Great Dionysia, the largest arts festival of the ancient world, held each year in honor of Dionysos, the god of wine. But there’s a problem: A ghost is haunting Athens’s grand theater. Nicolaos and the priestess Diotima, his clever partner in sleuthing (and now in matrimony), are hired to exorcise the ghost, but secretly suspect that a human saboteur is operating behind the scenes.
 
Then one of the actors is found hanged from the machine used to carry actors through the air when they play the part of gods. It’s quite a theatrical murder. As Nico and Diotima dig into the actor’s past, they discover enough suspects to fill a theater. As the festival approaches and pressure mounts on all sides, can they hunt down the killer in time? Or will they simply have to hope for a deus ex machina?