Empire of Iron: A Novel of the Vestal Virgins (Book Three in The Vesta Shadows trilogy, Revised Edition)

As they say in Rome, the Tarpeian Rock is close to the Capitol. It means that those who reach great heights are vulnerable to the deadliest of falls. And as the chief Vestal who navigated the Vestal order through the fall of the Republic and the rise of the empire, Priestess Pomponia now finds that her friendship with Emperor Augustus is a double-edged sword.

Any illusion of safety she had previously enjoyed has been shattered by a ruthless enemy who continues to torment her from the shadows, his vengeful nature rising to terrifying new summits that endangers not just Pomponia, but those she cares for—including Caesar himself.

Worse, when the Vestal order faces an unparalleled crisis—one that Pomponia must answer for—it seems that the gods have forsaken her. And all against the backdrop of a painful personal atonement as her complicated relationship with her protégé, Quintina, brings past secrets to light.

Empire of Iron is the unflinching conclusion to The Vesta Shadows trilogy. In it, Pomponia realizes that—like Rome itself—she must be willing to sacrifice everything and become even more ruthless than her enemies if she is to survive.

The Vesta Shadows trilogy is part of the larger seven-novel world created by author Debra May Macleod, novels that chronicle the Vestal order in Rome from its founding in the 8th century BCE to its banishment in the 4th century CE.

Visit the author's site at AllThingsVesta.com | DebraMayMacleod.com for fascinating content on ancient Rome and the Vestal Virgins.