'This is the first of three books set in a Roman Empire which never fell but spread to take in half the world.'
The story begins with Marcus age 16, who's parents have both just been killed and whose coffins are making a slow procession throughout the city. Now Rome is left with the question of who will be the next Emperor. Marcus? One of his uncles? A cousin?
Meanwhile, a young man is waiting to be crucified and a young malnourished girl is making her slow and painful way through the city. For what purpose?
I didn't realise that this was the first of 3 books so I was taken by surprise when the story ended long before I was ready for it. Not that I felt that the story was unfinished, but because I still wanted to know more about the characters.
It took me a few pages to get into the story, but I'm glad that I persevered. Plus it took me a little while to get my head around a futuristic Rome.
