The queen of the night - Paul Doherty

Rome is shocked by a series of gruesome murders in this historical crime mystery.

Rome: August 314 AD, and as the sun's insidious heat beats down, murderous forces lurk in the underbelly of the city. The world of Rome's rich and powerful is rocked by a series of violent abductions, as children of the elite are kidnapped and held for ransom. Meanwhile, veteran soldiers are being barbarously murdered; the indignities inflicted on their corpses reminiscent of the gruesome practices of the Picts whom they fought so many years ago.

The Empress Helena summons her secret agent, Claudia, in a bid to resolve these macabre occurrences. But Claudia has problems of her own. The perfectly preserved corpse of a young Christian woman has been disinterred in her uncle's garden and it falls to her to investigate this mystery too. She must track her way through a murky tangle of politics, religion and murderous violence, ever aware that the slightest mistake could cost her life.