I finished the second book in the John the Eunuch series yesterday, and by the end, I couldn't put it down.

It was a fairly long tale, and in it, John is ordered to investigate the deaths of three stylites, who seemed to spontaneously combust while sitting atop their pillars. They seem to be linked to pronouncements from a holy man named Michael, and this Michael is promising more deaths and further troubles for the city and its ruling class if his demands are not met.

As the deaths mount, John seems to be the only one who believes fully that 1.) they are linked, and 2.) they are the acts of human rather than divine hands. His investigations are made more difficult by the Empress Theodora, who for reasons of her own hates John. Indeed, John's very life, and the lives of those he holds dear, may be at stake as he conducts his inquiries.

It was a compelling read right to the end, and I was fully drawn into the settings of the city and the character of the folks who populate this setting. Plenty of little backstory information is presented, making the reader (me, in this case) want to get to the next book of the series.

I'm glad I finally got to this book. I don't have any more of the series on my shelf at the moment, but I'll have to move to correct that...(and I suppose there's always the library...)