Let’s start this off with some facts:
I love historical fiction, especially when it’s actually researched.
I’m a Classics student with a passion for Roman life.
My guilty pleasure is overdramatic teen romance novels.
I enjoyed the author’s previous work, Cleopatra’s Moon, very much.

So let’s just say I was biased towards liking this book even before I started reading it.

Curses and Smoke is exactly what it says it is, and I greatly appreciate it for that. Forbidden love, family drama, and a bit of action at the end. Really, graft any standard modern teen novel to Italy, circa 2000 years ago, and hope the transplant is successful. And in this case, it is.
What makes Curses and Smoke stand out is the fact that the author actually managed to do some research. I’ve read some teen historical fiction this year that makes me want to pull my hair out at all the inaccuracies. Curses and Smoke manages to avoid this, and present a decent picture of ancient Roman life. Yes, there are some things that are maybe not 100% super tiny accurate, but it would just be nit-picking in the extreme. Sure, love between the rich and their slaves may not have been common, but in the 1000 years of Rome’s existence, I’m sure it happened once or twice.
One thing I did notice, however, is that this book might be slightly impenetrable to those without a background in classics or history. Latin words are thrown in here and there, and while you can usually figure out what they mean by context. In addition, as is always a problem in historical fiction, the culture can be a little hard to break into. Slaves, gladiators, curse tablets, and various deities are all placed on the table with little to no introduction. However, to the author’s credit, she has notes explaining several of these things at the back of the book.

All in all, I really enjoyed Curses and Smoke. It combined my love of young, dumb love, and ancient history, and for that, I thank the author greatly.

Oh yeah, this book doesn’t have a happy ending. But seriously, in a novel about Pompeii, were you expecting any less?
( )

The fate of Pompeii never fails to fascinate me

Star-crossed YA romance between a medical slave, Tag, and his master's daughter, Lucia, set against the background of Pompeii: its earthquakes and eventual eruption of Vesuvius. The couple, along with a young boy slave, flee the city together. Lucia is escaping a hated marriage with an obnoxious patrician. Her fate is sad, and maybe unbelievable today, but her father was paterfamilias, having the power of life and death over his family. The notes after the story are priceless, giving much background of time and place. The story itself has many cultural details, cleverly worked into the text.

Highly recommended. ( )

Honestly I loved this book to pieces and not just because I got it on sale.
You hardly ever see historical fiction novels about Pompeii. This is one of the few and, I would argue, the best.
Would recommend. ( )