Caesar and frequently their friend, Publius Rutilius Rufus – himself a man somewhat torn in allegiance: conservative by instinct, but partisan of Marius by friendship. The novel closes with Marius's sixth consulship, in which he proves not to be as adept politically as he is militarily: and the tribune whose help he needs, Lucius Appuleius Saturninus, has an agenda of his own, leading to an armed insurrection which Marius himself has to put down. To cap it all, he also suffers a minor stroke during the summer, although he makes a full recovery. Tarred by association, his political career seems over: but after fighting many battles together, there is some reason for Marius and Sulla to hope that Rome will have peace for a few years. References Masters of Rome series 1990 Australian novels 100s BC Novels with gay themes Novels set in the 2nd century BC 1990s LGBT novels Cultural depictions of Sulla Cultural depictions of Cossutia Century (imprint) books de:Die Macht und die Liebe