A haunting work of historical fiction set amid the turmoil of the last days of the Roman Empire. From the blood-stained desert sands of Mesopotamia, to the barbaric wilderness and the dreaded painted tribesmen of northern Scotland, to the streets, courtyards and treacherous palaces of a small provincial capital called Londinium, this is the story of Marcus and Julia: two young lovers trying desperately to stay alive and find each other in the twilight days of the greatest Empire the world has ever known.

Originally published: London: Headline, 2001.