'An addictively escapist series. Ruso will be a hit'
THE TIMES
Gaius Petreius Ruso has arrived back in Britannia with his new wife Tilla and a trunk full of wedding crockery. His old friend and colleague Valens has promised to help him find work, but what Valens comes up with isn't at all what he had in mind: Ruso is tasked with hunting down a missing tax man named Julius Asper.Meanwhile, Tilla longs for somewhere to unpack the crockery, and a home for the baby she hopes will soon follow . . .
Compelled to delve deeper by a threat from his old sparring-partner Metellus, Ruso discovers that along with the tax man, the money is also missing. And the good townsfolk of Verulamium, bickering over what's become of it, may not be as loyal to Rome as they like to appear.
While Tilla tries to comfort Asper's wife, an anonymous wellwisher warns the couple to flee before they get hurt. It isn't long before Ruso and Tilla find themselves trapped in the heart of an increasingly treacherous conspiracy and begin to fear for their own lives . . .
'Downie does a good job with her story of nefarious goings-on in AD 117' OBSERVER
'Engrossing and clever . . . looks set to complete a hat-trick of hits for Downie' NEWS OF THE WORLD
