The Five-Day Dig — Jennifer Malin

An invitation to translate ancient inscriptions near Pompeii is a dream for college classics professor Winnie Price. Although the dig is for a television show instead of a scholarly project, it's a way to carry on the legacy of her archaeologist father, who died on their last trip to Italy. Then her department chair horns his way in on the gig. The show host is more sensationalist than scientist. Her cocky young assistant Chaz keeps flirting with her--and getting harder to resist. A looter's hole appears at the excavation site. Worst of all, it turns out someone forged the referral letter that got her on the show, and the prime suspect is her--or Chaz. Add to the mix a reenactment of pagan rites spiced up with a psychoactive home-brewed beer, and Winnie has a lot more to interpret than Latin. Fans of Tessa Bailey, Nora Roberts and Catherine Bybee will love this international mystery with a vibrant Italian setting and an archaeological plot spiced up with symbolic elements. The novel is also infused with a good dose of intelligent romantic comedy.