Rome, 70 BC. Gossip spreads through high society after a prominent senator commits suicide, and the body of a Vestal Virgin is discovered in the river Tiber. The daughter of Rome's most celebrated lawyer, Hortensia defies convention to investigate a trail of murders that leads straight to the dark heart of the Eternal City. As key witnesses are silenced by a ruthless and shadowy mastermind, Hortensia is forced to seek help from an ex-gladiator with secrets of his own.

"This is a stunning novel…. Freisenbruch is a gifted storyteller and tells a riveting tale."—Alison Weir