Curses and Smoke: A Novel of Pompeii - Hardcover

Shecter, Vicky Alvear

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0545509939 ISBN 13: 9780545509930

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2014

Synopsis

When your world blows apart, what will you hold onto?

TAG is a medical slave, doomed to spend his life healing his master's injured gladiators. But his warrior's heart yearns to fight in the gladiator ring himself and earn enough money to win his freedom.LUCIA is the daughter of Tag's owner, doomed by her father's greed to marry a much older Roman man. But she loves studying the natural world around her home in Pompeii, and lately she's been noticing some odd occurrences in the landscape: small lakes disappearing; a sulfurous smell in the air. . . . When the two childhood friends reconnect, each with their own longings, they fall passionately in love. But as they plot their escape from the city, a patrician fighter reveals his own plans for them -- to Lucia's father, who imprisons Tag as punishment. Then an earthquake shakes Pompeii, in the first sign of the chaos to come. Will they be able to find each other again before the volcano destroys their whole world?

About this title

About the Author

Vicky Alvear Shecter is the author of CLEOPATRA'S MOON, the winner of the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, and three nonfiction books for young readers, most recently ANUBIS SPEAKS! A GUIDE TO THE AFTERLIFE BY THE EGYPTIAN GOD OF THE DEAD. A docent in the Ancient History department of the Carlos Museum of Art, she lives near Atlanta, Georgia. Please visit her website at www.vickyalvearshecter.com or follow her on Twitter at @valvearshecter.

Reviews

Gr 7 Up—Lucia, the daughter of Titurius of Pompeii, is doomed to marry a rich old man to secure money for her father's gladiatorial school. As the wedding approaches, she falls into forbidden love with Tag, the family's medical slave. The two eventually plan to run away together, but many factors interfere. Lucky for them, Mount Vesuvius throws the city into chaos by erupting, providing the young lovers a perfect chance to escape. Unfortunately, Titurius manages to follow them, with tragic results. The novel illuminates many historical details of first-century Pompeii, such as that the law allowed fathers to abandon unwanted infants outside the city gates; that an 18-hour ash eruption preceded Vesuvius's killer explosion; and that, as private property, most gladiators in Pompeii's stadium received careful medical attention. The well-researched historical setting is the strongest aspect of the novel and may keep many readers hooked. Unfortunately, the ambitious web of relationships among slaves, citizens, parents, friends, lovers, and children does not always resonate with sufficient intensity—nor does the city's final devastation. Good for die-hard historical fiction fans.—Denise Ryan, Middlesex Middle School, Darien, CT

In ancient Pompeii shortly before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, inquisitive and carefree Lucia, the teenage daughter of the owner of a gladiator school, wants to be independent. Her debt-ridden father, however, intends to marry her off to one of his wealthy patrons. More complications arise once Tag, her childhood playmate, returns after a stint as a medical slave at another gladiator school. Will Tag escape his enslavement? Will Lucia escape her impending marriage to the highest bidder? Will either of them survive the curse of Pompeii? This plot-driven historical novel is a quick read, with enough Latin vocabulary and accurate descriptions of ancient Roman culture to keep readers interested, enlightened, and entertained. A fairly lengthy, detailed author’s note lays out the history of the eruption, including differing theories about when it actually occurred; facts about Roman culture and practices; and information about gladiators. Fans of Shecter’s Cleopatra’s Moon (2011) or any one of the many movies and TV shows about ancient Roman or Greek culture, such as Gladiator, should find plenty to like. Grades 7-10. --Candice Mack

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The world had gone silent. The dogs that had been howling moments before had quieted. Even the ragged chickens in the streets had stopped their infernal clucking and squawking. Her sandaled feet slapping on the cobblestones and her rapid breaths sounded unnaturally loud.Then a boom erupted around her, through her -- in her -- with such ferocity she fell to the ground in a crouch, covering her ears. The force of the explosion rattled her teeth and bones. She felt a blast of sudden heat, like someone had opened an immense kiln in her face.As if in a dream, she watched the cobblestone street ripple at the top of the lane, then hurtle toward her like an ocean wave.

Edition details

• Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0545509939
• ISBN 13: 9780545509930
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 336