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Historical Note

One of the best but hardest things about writing a story set in the Roperiod, there’s still a lot that we don’t know While this allows for greater i with real-life events, such as the Caledonian rebellion of AD 197

What we do know is that Hadrian’s Wall was built after the Ro forts, hty Roman miles—seventy-three land to Bowness-on-Solway on the west, and took fifteen thousand soldiers six years to complete

It had several purposes, functioning as a frontier, a h the Romans also made several forays into the area they called Caledonia—now Scotland—even building another shorter fortification, the Antonine Wall, between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde, though this was abandoned after only twenty years in AD 163

In spite of these efforts, the northern tribes were never coht under the Pax Rohout the second century AD Matters came to a head in AD 182, when the then Governor of Britain, Clodius Albinus, proclaie part of the British garrison to Gaul, where he was eventually defeated by his rival Septimius Severus

Despite a significant bribe to maintain the peace, the Maetae tribe north of Hadrian’s Wall took advantage of the Ro large parts of the fortifications

In AD 197 the new Emperor Severus sent commissioners north to rebuild the wall and re-establish control—although archaeological evidence shows continued fighting around this period The exact sequence of events is unclear, but the Sixth Victorious Legion was based in York—the Roman city of Eboracum—at this time, and the Emperor hi in AD 208

Hadrian’s Wall wasn’t abandoned by the Roman Eh we know that there was a Caledonian rebellion, and it affected the real forts of Coria—Corbridge—and Cilurnum—Chesters—which feature in this story, all the specific incidents and characters are fictionalised

I’ve tried to keep place names accurate—Lindum is Lincoln—but to avoid confusion I’ve referred to the collective northern tribes sih there was an actual Caledonii tribe in central Scotland, in addition to the Maetae, Picts and Selgovae, to name just a few

As the heroine’s hair colour is an i that several Roricola, describe the northern tribes as having red hair

Chapter One

North Britannia, AD 197

‘Halt!’

Livia ith a gasp, startled back to her senses by the shout With a lurch, the carriage rolled to a standstill, jolting her forward on the bench at the sa of armour and a heavy thud outside, like dozens of feet all staround at once

Quickly, she pulled herself upright, tightening her arirl asleep in her lap To her ah Livia had the o was about to

‘What’s happening? Are we under attack?’

Porcia, her e of hysteria Despite the presence of an arirl had been a bundle of nerves ever since lea