Fantastic historical fiction with a twist of the supernatural blended in. A third of the book feels like the series 24, with everything happening everywhere at once in the space of a day and a night. Chariot races, factional warfare, murders, escapes, medieval medicine, and mosaics. An amazing job of bringing ancient Constantinople alive. A good follow-up to the first book, which unfolded carefully and slowly - with this one, the story just explodes into many interlocking dramas.
The main complaint I would have is that all the women seem to want to throw themselves at the main character, who doesn’t exactly personify sex on legs. There’s definitely room to improve with this author’s writing of female characters.