title: Defender of Rome (Gaius Valerius Verrens)
author:  Douglas Jackson 
description: <b>Praise for Douglas Jackson: </b><br>"If I were Conn Iggulden or Simon Scarrow, I'd be rather worried by the new kid on the block." <br>&mdash;<i>Scotsman</i>
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  ### ABOUT THE BOOK
  
  
  Summer, AD 69\. Rome and its empire are in turmoil, caught in the coils of a
  desperate and destructive civil war. The emperor Otho is dead by his own hand
  and his rival, Aulus Vitellius, occupies the imperial throne. However, a new
  challenge has arisen in the East – the legions of Titus Flavius Vespasian have
  declared him _their_ Emperor.
  
  
  In the dry heat of an August morning, Gaius Valerius Verrens prepares for his
  last day on earth. Wrongly accused of deserting his legion on the field of
  Bedriacum, it seems he is destined to die a coward’s death.
  
  
  Then the executioner’s hand is stayed. Vitellius’s enemies will spare the life
  of the man who was once Hero of Rome if he pledges allegiance to Vespasian and
  his cause. Valerius – tired of the endless slaughter and hoping that he might
  be reunited with his lost love – agrees. And so he must battle his way south
  to Rome in order to persuade his friend Vitellius to stand down for the
  greater good of th