The Charioteer of Delphi
First edition, 2006
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| Author | Caroline Lawrence |
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| Cover artist | Peter Sutton Fred van Deelan |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Roman Mysteries |
| Genre | Historical novel |
| Publisher | Orion Books |
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Publication date
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2006 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 210 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 85833240 |
| LC Class | PZ7.L425 Cha 2007 |
| Preceded by | The Sirens of Surrentum |
| Followed by | The Slave-girl from Jerusalem |
The Charioteer of Delphi is a children's historical novel by Caroline Lawrence, published in 2006. It is the twelfth volume of the Roman Mysteries series. Like several of Lawrence’s novels, it explores a particular aspect of daily life in Ancient Rome: in this case, chariot racing.
September, A.D. 80: Flavia, Jonathan, Nubia, and Lupus are celebrating Nubia's birthday with their families and their friend Porcius, when a teenaged boy named Scopas arrives from Delphi with a message from Lupus’s mother, Melissa. She sends her love to her son, and asks, as a favor, that he help Scopas find a job with one of the chariot racing factions in Rome. He has already won races in Greece, despite being barely 13 years old. Though Scopas is awkward and strange in his manner, Flavia agrees to help him, and sends him to Rome with a letter asking her uncle and avid racing fan, Senator Cornix, to arrange an introduction.
A few weeks later, Scopas sends a letter to Ostia, saying that he has been taken on by the Green faction at the Circus Maximus, which is facing a crisis: their prize racing horse, Sagitta, has disappeared, and the Greens are offering a 100,000 sestercii reward for his safe return before the start of the next games. Flavia and the others arrange a trip to Rome when Flavia's father has to commission some repair work on their home, and leave on another voyage.
Arriving in Rome with Aristo, they are taken to the Greens’ stables to meet Scopas, who works as a groom. The lead trainer, Urbanus, says Scopas is the best groom he has ever known, but the other grooms despise him for his strange behavior (and possibly out of jealousy).
Among the Greens' recently acquired horses, Nubia recognizes a stallion named Pegasus, who was previously owned by Publius Pollius Felix (in The Sirens of Surrentum). Nubia confides that she has been having nightmares about being trapped in a burning tent; showing a surprising empathy with the horses, she believes that both she and Pegasus have terrible memories of losing family members to fire when they were very young.
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