The Secundus Papyrus
- 337 pages
- 12 hours of reading
This series transports readers to the tumultuous landscape of 5th-century Italy, centering on a married couple navigating extraordinary circumstances. Follow their intertwined lives as they confront the era's political machinations and personal dramas. It's a compelling blend of historical fiction and character-driven narrative, offering a window into a pivotal moment in history.


Surgeon Getorius Asterius, his wife Arcadia, the eunuch archpriest of a pagan fertility cult, the female head of a heretical Arian church, and an ambitious senator in league with a Chinese merchant: these are the prime movers in this mystery set in Ravenna, Italy, in A.D. 440. When Getorius is summoned to examine the castrated body of a youth found by Thecla in her Arian church, who is the sobbing “Vestal Virgin” nearby? Is there any connection between this crime and the fact that a senator is smuggling counterfeit Western coins to the Eastern Empire, and contraband Chinese products back to Ravenna? A coded message leads to a secret tunnel and the sinister temple of Cybele, whose devotees are self-mutilated eunuchs. In a stunning climax, the conspirators try to escape Ravenna, planning to sell their products in Egypt, but failing to recognize the deadly nature of what they are carrying…