During Sam's walk across northern England from coast to coast, a lightning strike blasts him back to 67 AD. Shortly the Roman Empire will be split by civil war after the Emperor Nero is deposed in 68. Will Prince Venutius seize this chance to rebel and depose the pro-Roman High Queen of the Brigantes, Cartimandua? If he does, Sam's captors will certainly support Venutius. Being a student of ancient history, Sam knows how Romans deal with rebels. Meanwhile he has to overcome suspicion, win freedom from slavery and earn his place in a fierce warrior society. He finds a lover too and, at the Great Feast of Samhain, she stands with him when an enemy invokes the power of the Dark Goddess against them both.