As competition for the imperial throne intensifies, Constantine and Maxentius realise their childhood friendship cannot last. Each man struggles to control their respective quadrant of empire, battered by currents of politics, religion and personal tragedy, threatened by barbarian forces and enemies within.
With their positions becoming at once stronger and more troubled, the strained threads of their friendship begin to unravel. Unfortunate words and misunderstandings finally sever their ties, leaving them as bitter opponents in the greatest game of all, with the throne of Rome the prize.
It is a matter that can only be settled by outright war...

Praise for Gordon Doherty and Simon Turney:

• 'A page turner from beginning to end ... A damn fine read' Ben Kane, author of Lionheart
• 'The Rise of Emperors series is first-rate Roman fiction. Doherty and Turney each breathe life into their respective characters with insight and humanity' Matthew Harffy, author of Wolf of Wessex
• 'A nuanced portrait of an intriguing emperor' The Times (on Turney's Commodus)
• 'A meticulously researched and vivid reimagining of an almost forgotten civilisation' Douglas Jackson, author of Hero of Rome (on Doherty's Empires of Bronze)
• 'An intriguing and highly polished piece of historical fiction' James Tivendale from Grimdark (on Sons of Rome)