Prince
Maxian, younger brother to Galen, Emperor of the Western Empire
(Rome), and Heraclius, Emperor of the Eastern Empire
(Constantinople), has returned to Rome to disrupt the magical
power of the centuries-old oath of allegiance to the Emperor that
all legionnaires take. Maxian believes the oath constrains
citizens to a narrow path, stifling creativity as well as any
thought of disobedience, and he intends to use all his sorcerous
power--and the help of Alexander the Great and Gaius Julius
Caesar, whom he has raised from the dead--to succeed.
Mount Damawand
from the valley below
The Empire,
meanwhile, is threatened by multiple enemies: The insane Persian
necromancer Dahak is determined to raise an army by any means to
regain the Peacock Throne toppled by the Empire. Zoë, niece of
Palmyra's Queen Zenobia, and her ragged but determined followers
plot revenge on Rome for allowing the Persians to sack and destroy
their beloved city. And in the deserts of Iraq, a man named
Mohammed is driven by a prophetic vision to build an army against
the Empire. Harlan's attention to detail is impressive, at times
overwhelming, as he fills the broad canvas of his hypothetical
Roman Empire.
Readers with
the stamina to follow every thread of the multitudinous plot lines
here will find a vigorously imagined, thought-provoking story.
