The fate of Roman Britain is sealed when Caradoc, King of the Dumnonii tribe in Tintagel, meets Flavius Magnus Maximus, one of the most influential Roman officers in Britannia. Their unlikely friendship leads to an ambitious plan to unite the tribal leaders and, once crowned the first High King of the Britons, Maximus casts his eyes on the throne of the Western Roman Empire.

Leading a force of brave warriors to Gaul, Maximus is victorious in battle. But it is not long after his return to Britain that hubris gnaws at him once again. Despite Caradoc's pleas to exercise caution, Maximus is determined to march on Rome itself. But who will pay the price for his bloodthirsty quest for power?

"Hume brings the bloody, violent, conniving world vividly to life...will appeal to those who thrill to Game of Thrones and other tales of intersecting, ever-warring, noble lineages" - Kirkus Review

"Hume deftly navigates the Arthurian legends, populating them with likable and despicable characters, and casting them in a fully realized historical setting" - Publishers Weekly

"Historical fiction of the most bloodthirsty and roistering kind" - Australian Bookseller & Publishers Magazine