The Fatal Scroll: A Herculaneum Mystery

by Eric Siblin

A literary murder mystery about the shady side of the antiquities trade, ancient philosophy, and tech’s utopian promises.

Marcus Sinclair is a history teacher whose life is stuck in neutral when he inherits a papyrus scroll from his antiquarian uncle. The mysterious scroll might contain a lost masterpiece from ancient Rome or perhaps an ancient recipe for personal tranquility, but it’s unreadable unless Marcus can figure out a way to unroll the scroll without destroying it. His quest takes him to Naples, where he befriends a Google software engineer days before the man is found dead. Marcus is interviewed by an investigative journalist, Kristi Grainger, and they find themselves on parallel paths leading to a Neapolitan trafficker in antiquities, a tech mogul obsessed with the distant past, and a clutch of academics searching for the lost library of Herculaneum. In a seaside city that is by turns lush and lethal, Marcus must confront the unraveling of more than a scroll.

This novel is inspired by a real place — the Villa dei Papiri, the only library from antiquity to have survived — and coincides with the Vesuvius Challenge, a real-life international competition to decipher Herculaneum scrolls.

Genres: Mystery

240 pages, Paperback

Published May 6, 2025

About the author

Eric Siblin is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker, and was the pop music critic at the Montreal Gazette. He made the transition to television in 2002 with the documentary Word Slingers, which explores the wacky subculture of competitive Scrabble tournaments. The film aired in Canada and the U.S., and won a Jury Award at the Yorkton Short Film & Video Festival. He also co-directed the documentary In Search of Sleep: An Insomniac's Journey, which aired in Canada and Europe. The Cello Suites is his first book.

Reviews

[Jannelies (living between hope and fear) · Rating 3 out of 5]

From the blurb: Marcus Sinclair is a history teacher whose life is stuck in neutral when he inherits a papyrus scroll from his antiquarian uncle. The mysterious scroll might contain a lost masterpiece from ancient Rome or perhaps an ancient recipe for personal tranquility, but it’s unreadable unless Marcus can figure out a way to unroll the scroll without destroying it. His quest takes him to Naples, where he befriends a Google software engineer days before the man is found dead. Marcus is interviewed by an investigative journalist, Kristi Grainger, and they find themselves on parallel paths leading to a Neapolitan trafficker in antiquities, a tech mogul obsessed with the distant past, and a clutch of academics searching for the lost library of Herculaneum. In a seaside city that is by turns lush and lethal, Marcus must confront the unravelling of more than a scroll.

And yes, that’s what happens in this book. So far, so good. Unfortunately, the story unfolds like the scroll it is all about: you see some parts and then you start imagining what the rest of the story could be. The author knows, so he tells us in short chapters and from different POV’s. The clues as to what is on the scroll and who stole it when and where (because it’s not so straightforward) are far and wide between and I had to go back in the book sometimes to better understand what was happening at certain points.

I liked the historical and scientific background but the characters stayed a bit flat. It all reminded me of a puzzle that needed to be solved without ever seeing the finished one. Not bad but not spectacular either.

Thanks to ECW Press and Netgalley for this review copy.

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not the biggest fan of crime thrillers or murder mysteries, but once I got into this one, I found it a pretty engaging read. The writing is honestly not spectacular. The characters feel somewhat unrealistic and undermotivated at times, especially the Italian ones. What kind of Italian would ever prefer a Turkish coffee over a good Italian espresso?! The nice thing about the book is that it offers a fairly grounded look into the world of the Herculanean papyri, the carbonized remains of a famous library from antiquity that were preserved by the ashes of the Vesuvius eruption. The acknowledgements reveal that the author talked with a lot of well-known scholars. Sometimes these tidbits fit well into the story, but sometimes they feel a bit too digressive. The nerdiness of the author permeates his characters in ways that feel a bit forced. And the papyri are presented as if they are valuable resources that must be hoarded in order to be of use for digital research, but in fact, most scholars are very generous with their data about these scrolls and would be happy to share it with anyone who could help them decipher them. Still, if you aren’t the type to read non-fiction books about this kind of thing, you can learn a bit from this book.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Fatal Scroll is the first book in the new Herculaneum Mystery series by Eric Siblin. This is the first book I’ve read by the author.

Based on the description, I had high hopes for this book. I expected “The DaVinci Code” level suspense. Sadly, this didn’t work for me. The story was well written, but the characters didn’t have enough depth for me and the artefact just wasn’t that interesting for me. I like the historical background, but the mystery felt not fully revealed in the end.

I did enjoy the narration by Ivan Sherry.

This was a quick read, if it will keep your attention. I am grateful for the opportunity to read it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Fatal Scroll (Herculaneum Mystery #1) by Eric Siblin
Narrated by Ivan Sherry
Publisher: ECW Press Audio
Genre: General Fiction (Adult), Mystery & Thrillers
Expected Publication Date: May 6, 2025

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marcus is a history teacher who inherits an ancient papyrus scroll from his uncle. he takes off to Naples to try to get more information about it.

I found there were a lot of characters to keep track of throughout the story and many POVs which made it confusing for me. It was hard to follow along with the story as it kept jumping all over the place. I did like the history and the descriptions of the locations in the story but the parts of the scroll didn't capture my attention. There was some action in the story and it was pretty well written but I didn't feel like the mystery was fully revealed.

I listened to the audiobook version and I found the characters were not very differentiated and it was hard to keep track of them all.

I think overall it was a great idea and the storyline was fun and intriguing, but it didn't really do it for me.

Thankyou to NetGalley and ECW Press for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Elisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

It must be so hard to write a book, that it pains me to write a negative review, but this novel was not for me. I liked some parts, especially the historical information and the descriptions of the places in which the action takes place. The details about modern technologies being developed to translate unreadable manuscripts were fascinating. Unfortunately, I didn’t connect with any of the characters, so it was hard to root for them. The plot seems too disorganized and full of details that don’t add much to the action (like the food the characters eat). I may not have been the right reader for this.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/ECW Press.

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Fatal Scroll is the first book in the Herculaneum Mystery series. I enjoyed the book but it didn’t quite meet my expectations. I anticipated DaVinci Code/Dan Brown excitement.

I like Eric Siblin writing style but wanted more from the story. There were a lot of different characters and it’s told in multiple POV. Ivan Sherry did an excellent job with the narration.

Thank you to NetGalley & ECW Press Audio for letting me read this ARC.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the story, but think the author missed a great opportunity. I read a lot of books with similar themes of ancient mysteries/artifacts by Cussler, James Rollins, etc. I'd really been hoping for something along those lines with more detail. For instance, it would rock the academic world, but perhaps a group wanting to steer the letter's effect on the real world (if any) would have been more interesting. The ending left me disappointed.

[Lynne Scopazzi · Rating 1 out of 5]

It could have been a good story but not for me