By William Dietrich
HarperCollins
Hardcover and Paperback Editions

Hadrian’s wall is over two centuries old and remains a stronghold dividing Roman Britannia from seemingly uncivilized Celtic barbarians.

Hadrian's Wall Excerpt Valeria woke to the sound of lapping water. She was inside, she sensed dimly, but the murmur of waves and play of sun still filtered through the woven wattle of an undaubed wall. Light ignited the dust motes in the air. The roof was lost in shadow but smelled of damp thatch. She was lying on a straw mattress – she could hear it crinkle beneath her – and covered with thick wool blankets. She also ached so much that she could barely move. Half her body felt like it had been drummed with hammers. ©2004 William Dietrich Published with permission from HarperCollins

In its shadow, Valeria, the beautiful daughter of a senator, is the victim of an arranged marriage to Marcus. This cowardly man has been appointed as commander, replacing reluctant Galba, an experienced soldier. Galba becomes attracted to Marcus’ young wife and decides to win her for himself.

On the other side of Hadrian’s wall, a man named Arden will fall for adventure-challenged Valeria, who is kidnapped and torn between her affiliations on either side of the wall when she falls in love with Arden. Cultures collide.

This historical novel reads more like a complicated romance than the story the cover of the book implies. If this isn’t a deterrent, this book makes for a good read involving greed, passion and war.

Bookworm's Briefing

William Dietrich is a Pulitzer prize-winning author and a journalist who lives in Washington State. He is the author of Ice Reich, Getting Back and Dark Winter. He is also the author of The Final Forest, Northwest Passage and Natural Grace, all works of nonfiction.