Pompeii

I came to Robert Harris's Pompeii via his novel Imperium, the story of the rise of Cicero. In this book, which covers several days surrounding the epochal eruption in 79 A.D., Harris similarly wears his erudition and research lightly and confidently. The story centers around an aqueduct engineer whose discovery of problems in the system leads him to the top of Vesuvius just as the volcano is preparing to blow. Both Pliny the Younger and Elder figure in the story, which includes plenty of period color and intrigue. The eruption itself consumes the last 100 pages, and Harris carries it off beautifully.