Caroline Lawrence writes incredibly detailed, fascinating stories. This one is no different. The well-paced plot keeps you turning the pages to find out what is going to happen next.
However, this is a very bloodthirsty book mainly because the Roman games were bloodthirsty games. The children explore their feelings about the violence and find that the bloody nature of the sport can be both frightening and addicting.
I really felt that some of the descriptions bordered on too graphic. One of my main problems with this book was the part with the little girls being eaten by hippos and crocodiles. The main character, Flavia, just barely manages to escape death through the intervention of her former slave, Nubia. I found the entire scene with the girls in the water to be disturbing. It was fairly graphic and heartbreaking. I have a fairly vivid imagination and I actually ended up dreaming about this scene the night after I read the book.
The bottom line is, if you have a child who is prone to nightmares or who has an over-active imagination, then this would be one I would have them skip. However, since the plot line is important to the rest of the series, it would be good to read it and summarize the events for your child. This is what I did for my son.