ANCIENT ROME, AD 37 It begins with a man's hand curled around another's throat. Emperor Tiberius first dispatches a traitor. Then his whole family. Next all his friends. It is as if he never existed. THIS IS ROMAN JUSTICE. Into this fevered forum, a child is born. His mother is Agrippina, granddaughter of Emperor Augustus. But their imperial blood is no protection. The closer you are to the heart of the empire, the closer you are to power, intrigue, and danger. She faces soldiers, senators, rivals, silver-tongued pretenders, each vying for position. One mistake risks exile, incarceration, execution. Or, worst of all, the loss of her infant son. For Agrippina knows that opportunity waits, even in your darkest moments. Her son is everything. She can make this boy, shape him into Rome itself - the one all must kneel before. BUT FIRST, THEY MUST SURVIVE . . .