Book excerpt: Neil Perkins, a Latin student at Haltwhistle Grammar School in England, unearths an ancient Roman manuscript. He dedicates himself to study Latin and so uncovers a story of treachery and betrayal from the third century. Disaffected centurion, Rusticus, serves Rome at Hadrian's Wall, an unruly frontier. A Celt named Calum, who was deeply changed when he saw Christians martyred in the Roman Coliseum, saves Perkins from a massacre. Not only will you learn the differences between ancient paganism and the primal Christian faith practiced in third-century Britain, but you will discover a more thoughtful approach to life as a result.