Ancient Roman Fiction

The second volume of the Hugo-nominated Aquila series by World Fantasy Award Winner S.P. Somtow continues the outrageous adventures of the Romans as they bumble their way through their newfound Empire in the New World. The original story was a 1983 Hugo Award Nominee. Equus Insanus, son of the intrepid Aquila, finds the civilized life of Rome tedious. So he is eager to return to his native land of Terra Nova to assist in the construction of Caesar’s latest fancy - a transprovincial railroad. But on this alternate Earth where the Roman Empire rules America, things seldom go as planned. ...

In Rome, 80 B.C., on a warm spring morning, Gordianus the Finder receives a summons to the house of a then-unknown young advocate and orator, Cicero. Ambitious and brilliant, the 26-year-old Cicero is about to argue his first important case. His client is a wealthy farmer, one Sextus Roscius of the town of Ameria, who stands accused of the most unforgivable act in Ancient Rome: the murder of his father.

Stolen gold, a dead priest and a mystery fit for the gods Rome’s treasures are gone and a priest lies dead within the burned-out shell of the Temple of Vulcan. Did he die a hero protecting the riches stored at the temple as everyone says or is there a more sinister reason for his death? Facing financial ruin if he cannot find the missing gold and silver, Secundus makes enemies of Rome’s rich and powerful as he grapples with hostile priests, corrupt patricians and a mystery which seems to hold no clues. From the depths of the fire comes hope as a potential new home appears on the market ...

Two heroes of the Roman army - Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro, battle-scarred veterans famed for their resilience and bravery - lead their best men into battle against a terrifying leader, Boudica, Queen of the Britons. A spectacular and unforgettable story of brutal warfare, honour and sacrifice as brave men prepare to throw down their lives for the glory, and survival, of the Roman Empire.

Two brothers, honored soldiers of the Sixth Legion, are left for dead in the brutal forests of Germania by a commander who values pride over victory. Stripped of their armor, their honor, and their names, Tiro and Bracus are shackled and sold into the grim world of a gladiatorial school in Hispania. They are no longer soldiers; they are property, forced to fight for the mob's amusement. In the savage arena, their legionary training makes them an unstoppable force. As the "Brother Blades," their fame rises with every victory, but the spectacle begins to poison their bond. One brother clings ...

Dreams and destiny in the land of the Great Goddess. Perfect for fans of Madeline Miller, Jennifer Saint and Natalie Haynes. Four thousand years ago, Crete is a land of contrasts. The mountains are wild and forbidding and people live and toil there vulnerable to disaster and sudden death. Yet on the coast, a new world is arising. As a young woman in the high mountains, Talita knows nothing of the opulent and sophisticated civilisation developing in the cities of the coast. Yet when her uncle sells her and she is taken to the city of Mulia she seizes the chance of a new life. Mulia is famous...

58 AD, Rome. Agricola, teenage son of an impoverished yet distinguished noble family, has staked all his resources and reputation on a military career. His reward? A posting as tribune in the far-off northern province of Britannia. Serving under renowned general Suetonius Paulinus, Agricola soon learns the brutality of life on the very edges of the empire, for the Celtic tribes of Britannia are far from vanquished. To take control of the province, the Romans must defeat the ancient might of the druids.

In "Presence in Prague", Father Thomas O’Neill is enjoying a solitary evening in his top-floor apartment in Rome when he receives a troubling call from a Cardinal at the Vatican. There's a crisis at St. Bede's College in Prague involving disturbing supernatural phenomena—grotesque manifestations, eerie sounds, and a series of incapacitated priests. As reports reveal walls screaming and strange writing appearing in ancient catacombs, the church's usual methods have failed, necessitating Thomas's unusual expertise in confronting genuine evil. Recalling his own past encounters with ...

An ancient curse propels talented flutist Gigi Perrin back to A.D. 408, to the court of the depraved Roman Emperor Honorius and his admirable sister, Princess Galla Placidia. There, Gigi grapples with her disbelief about what has happened, and with the strange, new world of violent politics, social upheaval and barbarians straining at the very gates of an empire. Through it all, she must struggle with her powerful attraction to a pagan senator and military commander, Quintus Magnus, a man exotically different from anyone she has ever known. On the brink of a dark and war-torn age, Gigi ...

On the eve of Marcus Cicero's inauguration as consul of Rome, the grisly death of a boy sends ripples of fear through a city already wracked by civil unrest, crime, and debauchery of every kind. Felled by a hammer, his throat slit and his organs removed, the young slave appears to have been offered as a human sacrifice, forbidden as an abomination in the Roman Republic. For Cicero, the ill forebodings of this hideous murder only increase his frustrations and the dangers he already faces as Rome's leader.

It is 50BC and Caesar winters with his legions in the north - all Gaul conquered but a triumphant return to Rome denied him by the senate who seek his blood. Yet unrest stirs in unknown lands, as the tribes of mountainous Aquitania rise under a terrifying new leader and drive out their Roman occupiers. Marcus Falerius Fronto, exiled from Rome, seeks out his former commander in an effort to build a future and soon finds himself in command of a most unusual legion with a remit to restore peace in Aquitania.

Britannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Briton . . . and these are their stories.

🔥 A Warrior’s Fall. A Slave’s Struggle. A Rebel’s Rise. 🔥 Once, Gaius Aemilius Rufus commanded legions, feasted among Rome’s elite, and dictated the fate of men. But in the blink of an eye, betrayal and misfortune cast him into the darkness—his name erased, his honor stolen, his freedom lost. Now, shackled and sold, Rufus is thrown into a world where only strength and cunning can keep him alive. The gladiatorial arena is his new battlefield, where steel meets flesh and only the strongest walk away. Yet, amid the dust, blood, and roaring crowds, he finds something he never ...

In the shadowed marble halls of Rome’s power, Sejunus Strabol Junius, the illegitimate son of a legendary Praetorian guard, is thrust into a deadly game of politics, deception, and honor. Torn between loyalty to the empire and the haunting legacy of his father, Sejunus navigates treacherous Senate intrigues, brutal gladiatorial spectacles, and the deadly purges of the Praetorian Guard. From the bustling streets of the Forum to secret tunnels beneath the Palatine Hill, The Praetorian Guardsman delivers a riveting tale of political conspiracy, forbidden alliances, and heart-stopping action....

In this second book of the Camillus series Marcus is pitted against enemies old and new. Publius Postumius is the hero of the hour, sacking the city of Bolae with its incredible treasures. Sent with a relief force to support his old enemy Marcus falls foul of an assassination attempt before his credibility is tested by the scheming of his old commander and he must choose between friendship and duty. Back in Rome tensions are rising as Postumius’s schemes grow and his soldiers rage against their former Tribune as the plebeians and patricians come to bloody conflict. Marcus is given his ...

In this action-romance short story, dashing Greek gladiator Leonidas promises his true love he’ll buy her freedom if he wins his own in the Colosseum of Ancient Rome. First he must defeat an opponent he knows he cannot kill. The year is 83AD and it’s nine years since Roman soldiers killed a young Leonidas’s family in their farmhouse outside Athens and consigned him to the life of a gladiator at Ludus Magnus, one of the biggest and best ludi gladiatori, or gladiator schools, in Rome. Since then, he remains undefeated after twenty-five fights and has risen to the top of the gladiator ...

After the Fall ratchets up the tension as time traveler Gigi Perrin and her husband, the Roman warrior Quintus Magnus, join forces with the Visigoth King Alaric to march on Rome. There waits Princess Galla Placidia, the admirable sister of the despicable Emperor Honorius. About to be forced into an arranged marriage by her brother, Placidia fears a bleak future, trapped in a loveless union. In an attempt to save Rome from barbarian invasion, Placidia puts aside her troubles and meets with Alaric’s delegation, which includes Gigi and Magnus, and the king’s second-in-command, the Visigoth...

Theft, murder, deception and the threat of war! Another day in Ancient Rome During the Festival of Consualia, a precious staff of office and the King's beloved racehorse are stolen. TO add to the confusion a Sabine guard is killed and the Roman soldier who was his counterpart goes missing. The situation becomes even more complicated when the family of our hero, Secundus, comes under suspicion, and he and his sidekick Graccus are banned from the investigation. Determined to prove their innocence and solve the crime, Secundus and Graccus set out to retrieve the stolen family heirloom and ...

Born a slave, the Roman Stoic philosopher Epictetus (c. 55-135 AD) taught that mental freedom is supreme, since it can liberate one anywhere, even in a prison. In How to Be Free, A. A. Long - one of the world's leading authorities on Stoicism and a pioneer in its remarkable contemporary revival - provides a superb new edition of Epictetus's celebrated guide to the Stoic philosophy of life (the Encheiridion) along with a selection of related reflections in his Discourses.

This famous work by Lucretius is a masterpiece of didactic poetry, and it still stands today as the finest exposition of Epicurean philosophy ever written. The poem was produced in the middle of first century B.C., a period that was to witness a flowering of Latin literature unequaled for beauty and intellectual power in subsequent ages. The Latin title, De Rerum Natura, translates literally to On the Nature of Things and is meant to impress the reader with the breadth and depth of Epicurean philosophy.