Roman Blood (1991)

Gordianus investigates a murder case being defended by the young Cicero in 80 BC. Saylor builds the novel around a historical legal proceeding, then supplies an imagined investigator and the private actions the surviving record cannot provide. Choose it for the connection between evidence, patronage, property and punishment. The courtroom stakes make Roman power practical: a plausible explanation is useful only if somebody can safely make it heard.