A distinguished senator has gone into hiding after being accused of treachery, leaving his family to fend for themselves. His elder son Quintus has become a gladiator, while young Lucius works as a servant in the gladiator school. Lucius is convinced of his father’s innocence – but how can he prove it? The gladiator troupe is sent to Pompeii to take part in the games. It’s a lawless place, where knife-wielding thugs lurk in every alleway. But Lucius is befriended by Valens, the sponsor of the games, who offers to help him find his father…

Meanwhile, strange rumblings and tremors are felt in the town, and a seer is warning that the ‘end of days’ is approaching. What can this portend? Can Quin survive his fights with the seasoned gladiators of Pompeii? And is Valens all he seems?

Young Lucius’s privileged life is changed forever when his father, accused of being a traitor, disappears and leaves his family in shame and poverty. His brother Quintus chooses to train as a gladiator. Life for Lucius is now among the slaves and criminals who work and train at Rome’s gladiator school.

Blood Oath, the first title in the series, leads the reader into an exciting story of family, betrayal, innocence lost and power abused. Can Lucius decode the strange messages and find his father? Can he save his family from the grasping hands of his uncle, Ravilla? And can Quintus survive long enough in the arena to fight another day?