Book excerpt: The Last Emperor of Rome, a tale of love, betrayal, and turmoil, takes place during the final thirty-five years of the Western Roman Empire. It was a time of palace intrigue, assassinations, barbarian invasions, declining institutions, struggling political alliances, and a general breakdown of the imperial system of government which had ruled much of Europe and North Africa for the previous five hundred years. Before his entry onto the national stage, little is known about Emperor Julius Valerius Majorian, the major historical character of this novel. Therefore, the author invented much of the storyline, including the Emperor's early life, his family, and his career in the Imperial Legions. The story begins in 461 AD as Emperor Majorian is confined to a cell in a Roman prison and reflects upon his life. His thoughts take him from his childhood in Gaul to his career in the Roman Legions, his marriages and family, his dealings with men such as Count Flavius Ricimer, Master General Flavius Aetius and Senator Gaius Gallipolis, and ultimately onto his rise to political prominence in the waning Roman world. As Majorian sinks deeper into despair, he tries to make sense of the consequences of his actions. Come ride along with the Imperial Legions of Aetius and Ricimer as they battle the armies of the Huns, the Visigoths, and the Vandals. Attend a Roman wedding. Take part in conversations about immigration, slavery, Roman law, and the rise of Christianity. And witness the coronation of a Roman emperor. A well-conceived and imaginative novel of the late antiquity period, The Last Emperor of Rome delves into the political, religious, and military turmoil of this frantic time. Although it was the end of a way of life, the events portrayed in this novel opened the door to something new and powerful. The reverberations are still felt today.