The Roma Sub Rosa Series

1. Roman Blood (1991)

2. Arms of Nemesis (1992)

3. Catalina's Riddle (1993) -- Winner, 1993 Lambda Literary Award for Gay Men's Mystery;  Nominee; 1994 Hammett Award from the International Association of Crime Writers)

4. The Venus Throw (1995) -- Winner, The Critics’ Choice Award, 1995; named “Best Mystery Novel of 1995” by the Portland Oregonian; Nominee, 1995 Lambda Literary Award/Gay Men’s Mystery

5. A Murder on the Appian Way (1996)

6. The House of the Vestals: The Investigations of Gordianus the Finder (1997)

7. Rubicon (1999) -- Winner, Herodotus Award from the Historical Mystery Appreciation Society

8. Last Seen in Massilia (2000) Shortlist, CWA Ellis Peters Historical Dagger award

9. A Mist of Prophecies (2002)

10. The Judgment of Caesar (2004)

    It is 48 B.C. For years now, the rival Roman generals Caesar and Pompey have engaged in a contest for world domination. Both now turn to Egypt, where Pompey plans a last desperate stand on the banks of the Nile, while Caesar's legendary encounter with queen Cleopatra will spark a romance that reverberates down the centuries. But Egypt is a treacherous land, torn apart by the murderous rivalry between the goddess-queen and her brother King Ptolemy.

    Into this hot-house atmosphere of intrigue and deception comes Gordianus the Finder, innocently seeking a cure for his wife Bethesda in the sacred waters of the Nile. But when his plans go awry, he finds himself engaged in an even more desperate pursuit - to prove the innocence of the son he once disowned, who stands accused of murder.

    The judgment of Caesar will determine the fate of Gordianus's son; the choice Caesar makes between Cleopatra and her brother Ptolemy will determine the future of Rome's empire. At the center of these two dilemmas, Gordianus becomes the unwitting fulcrum that will shift the balance of history. Witness to the death throes of the old world, he is to play a critical role in the birth of the world to come.

    Drawing scrupulously on historical sources, this is the most ambitious novel yet in Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series. Saylor presents a bold new vision of Caesar and paints a compelling and original portrait of Cleopatra, amid bloodshed, battles and storms, in a setting of Egyptian magic and mystery.

• A Twist at the End: A Novel of O. Henry (2000) - Winner, Violet Crown Award from the Writers League of Texas

• Have You Seen Dawn? (February 2003)

• A Gladiator Dies Only Once (2005)
  Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series of novels, set in the late Roman Republic and featuring Gordianus the Finder, has garnered unusual acclaim from readers and reviewers alike, establishing him as one of the pre-eminent historical crime writers. In A Gladiator Dies Only Once, the second collection of his award-winning stories featuring Gordianus, Saylor more than meets his own high standards. Set during period between the events of his novels Roman Blood and Catalina's Riddle, these previously untold adventures range from twisted search for truth behind a threatening blind item in the Acta Diurna ("The Consul's Wife") and a kidnapping and murder during the revolt of Sertorius ("The White Fawn") to the story behind Cicero's discovery of Archimedes's tomb ("Archimedes Tomb") and a perplexing domestic situation in Gordianus's own home ("If a Cyclops Could Vanish in a Glimpse of an Eye.")

See also:

• The Detective As Historian (2000) by Ray Broadus Browne

Writing as Aaron Travis (Erotica)

• Beast of Burden (1993)
  Five ferocious tales from a master of lascivious prose. Innocents surrender to the brutal sexual mastery of their superiors as taboos are shattered and replaced with the unwritten rules of masculine conquest.

• Big Shots (1993)
  Two fierce tales in one electrifying volume. In "Beirut," Travis tells the story of ultimate military power and erotic subjugation; "Kip," Travis' hypersexed and sinister take on film noir, appears in unexpurgated form for the first time.

• Exposed (1996)
  A volume of shorter Travis tales, each providing a unique glimpse of the horny gay male in his natural environment! Cops, college jocks, ancient Romans, even Sherlock Holmes and his loyal Watson cruise these pages, fresh from the throbbing pen of one of our hottest authors.

• Tag Team Studs (1996) with Clay Caldwell
  Thrilling tales from these two legendary eroticists. The wrestling world will never seem the same once you've made your way through this assortment of sweaty, virile studs. But you'd better be wary; if should one catch you off guard, you just might spend the rest of the night pinned to the mat....

• The Flesh Fables (1996)
  One of Travis' best collections, finally re-released. The Flesh Fables includes "Blue Light," his most famous story, as well as other masterpieces that established him as the erotic writer to watch.

• In the Blood (1996)
  Written when Travis had just begun to explore the true power of the erotic imagination, these stories laid the groundwork for later masterp ieces. Among the many rewarding rarities included in this volume: In the Blood a heart-pounding descent into sexual vampirism, written wit h the furious erotic power that has distinguished Travis work from the beginning.

• Slaves of the Empire (1998)
  The brutality of battle—and the pain and pleasures of being a slave!

  Swords clang harshly as the arena crowd goes wild. Magnus, the mightiest gladiator in all of Rome, gives the people what they want—bloodlust and death for their entertainment. He and his mortal enemy, Urius, are the best of the best of the slaves doing battle for the roaring crowds. Magnus is invincible—or is he? A conspiracy of evil unfolds around him, threatening to destroy him in ways he could never imagine. You see, cruel Senator Marcellus has plans for the slave. Plans of pleasure—and of pain. Slaves of the Empire is critically acclaimed author Aaron Travis' classic gladiator epic of slavery, sex, and sadism, reprinted for a new generation of heated readers of gay erotica.

  Slaves of the Empire immerses readers in the brutal age of ancient Rome, when the powerful took their sadomasochistic pleasure from the weak, and pain and death awaited every slave, no matter how strong. If you've ever loved the oily gladiator adventures of the past, you are in for a treat. This tale has it all: fine writing, complex characters, and a story of rivalry, power, and torment—and of course, an abundance of steamy gay sex. It is the Roman Empire in all its glory, built with the hot blood, sweat, and tears of the slaves.

• Unmade Bed (1998)