the book and the series

With the death of the despotic Tiberius in 37 A.D., expectations are high that his successor will restore pride and vigor to the young Roman Empire. But although 25-year-old Caligula yearns to be a "good" Princeps, beloved of everyone, his upbringing amid betrayal, mutiny, and murder has made him perilously unstable.

Marcus Carinna was a womanizing scoundrel until the death of his older brother, Publius, drove him to become an officer in a Danube legion. Now his father, a powerful Senator who helped bring Caligula to the throne, has summoned him back to Rome to take his brother's place at the new Princeps' side. Complicating Marcus's task is his desire to vindicate Publius, once Caligula's closest friend, who committed suicide after being accused of treason.

Forced by duty and honor to obey, Marcus will grapple with personal betrayal, attempted murder, and an irresistible attraction to an enemy's captured daughter before he learns the monstrous truth about his brother's death. Too late, he discovers why Caligula told him when they met, "The point, O Theseus, is not to learn what waits at the heart of the maze. The point is to escape alive."

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