Publisher's Synopsis
Blood & Honour:
Rome 27BC.
The civil war is over.
Augustus Caesar is the First Man of Rome.
But Marcus Agrippa has heard rumours of a coup, centred around the senator Lucius Scaurus.
He enlists the help of the poet Rufus Varro and his bodyguard Manius to help investigate.
The senator has recruited a company of actors and school of gladiators to further his ambitions. But what is his ultimate plan?
Varro must get to the heart of the conspiracy, or die trying.
Blood & Vengeance:
Rome 26BC.
An infamous slave trader, Herennius, has been robbed and murdered. Stabbed in the chest.
Caesar himself has taken an interest in the crime.
Marcus Agrippa instructs one of his agents, Rufus Varro, to investigate. Varro must interview various party guests who were with Herennius on the night of the murder - including a corrupt advocate and an enigmatic young poet.
Everyone is a suspect, yet everyone is seemingly innocent.
In the meantime, Agrippa recruits Varro's bodyguard, the former gladiator, Manius, to infiltrate the inner circle of Publius Carbo, a dangerous demagogue. Intelligence suggests that Carbo and his followers are planning to launch an attack on the city's Jewish quarter.
But uncovering the truth will exact a price for the two agents.
Rome is a city full of secrets and peril. Enemies lurk in the shadows.
Blood and vengeance abound.
Blood & Secrets:
25BC.
Rufus Varro, former spy, is summoned back to Rome from his country villa by Marcus Agrippa.
Accompanied by his bodyguard, Manius, Varro journeys to the capital. The road proves perilous however, when Varro is targeted by assassins.
Once they reach Rome, Agrippa orders Varro to investigate the gruesome murder of a young aristocrat, Marcus Corvinus - a close friend of Tiberius and Julia, Caesar's stepson and daughter.
Could Varro's new assignment and the plot to assassinate him be linked?
The agent must tread carefully in his investigation, as well as watch his back for any further attempts on his life.
Varro eventually uncovers the truth. It is a secret which, if he doesn't bury, could send him to his grave.
At the same time the figure behind the assassination attempt is unmasked - and the hunted becomes the hunter.
Richard Foreman is the bestselling author of numerous historical series set during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire, including the Augustus Caesar books, Sword of Empire and Sword of Rome. He is also the author of Warsaw, Raffles: The Complete Innings and Band of Brothers, a series charting the story of Henry V and the Agincourt campaign. Richard writes modern thrillers too, under the pseudonym of Thomas Waugh. He is a judge for the HWA Crowns and the founder of the London History Festival. He lives in London.
Praise for the Spies of Rome series:
"A masterful and evocative depiction of a fledgling imperial Rome fraught with intrigue and at war with itself. The story and characters are as striking as the graffiti that adorns the violent city's walls during Augustus' rise." Steven Veerapen, author of The Abbey Close.
"An arresting opening that leads into a thoroughly gripping story. Impressive research and understanding of the period allows Richard Foreman to move so seamlessly and effectively from historical epic to historical detective thriller. A must read for fans of Steven Saylor." Peter Tonkin, author of The Ides.
"Original and hard-hitting... Rome burns with intrigue in this totally unputdownable book." Antony Cutler, author of The Accursed.
