August. 383 AD. Flavius Maximus has declared himself emperor and crossed into Gaul. The civil war with Gratian has been short, and the rightful ruler of the West lies in an early grave.

Now two men face off across an empire. Theodosius in the east, his armies large but reliant on mercenaries. Maximus in the west, his forces small, but battle hardened and loyal to a fault.

In the middle of the chaos, at the heart of a dying world, two old friends march at the heads of opposing forces. Tribune Sixtus Victorinus fights for the West. Not out of loyalty to Maximus, but to his two sons who are bound by oath to fight for the pretender.

And General Gaius Felicius for the East. Outcasted by Maximus, he will stop at nothing to see the usurper toppled. But if his old friend stands in his path, is the road to vengeance still one he will choose to tread?

War is coming, and both men must look inside themselves and decide what is greater: the cause they fight for, or the bonds of fellowship. 🔥⚔️

Praise for Adam Lofthouse:

'Simply Masterful' - Gordon Doherty ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Highly recommended' - MJ Porter ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Adam Lofthouse brings a Robert E. Howard Conanesque vigour and flair to historical fiction' - Edoardo Albert ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Fast paced, full of action' - Theodore Brun ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'A lesson in how to depict a frontier world at the edge of a crumbling empire' - Mark Knowles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Readers are loving The Shadow of Rome series:

'Good first book for the series, lots of plot twists kept my attention am looking forward to the next in the series.' ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Reader Review

'Fast paced, great characters, interesting storyline, another Roman epic from Adam Lofthouse. Can’t wait to read the next instalment soon!' ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Reader Review

'Great start to a late Roman series' ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Reader Review

'The hard hitting and commanding plots and character development just keep coming' ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Reader Review