The Governor’s Man

Roman Britain, AD 224. Imperial investigator Quintus Valerius is sent back to the province where his brother died and his career in the Praetorian Guard was broken. Silver from the emperor’s mines is disappearing, and the official explanation that the deposits are exhausted does not withstand scrutiny. Working with Tiro, a native Briton assigned as his optio, Quintus follows the missing revenue through mine officials, soldiers and provincial households while witnesses are silenced.

The inquiry widens into murder, organised fraud and the threat of rebellion, with renewed Druid activity sharpening Roman fears of unrest. Quintus must also confront Julia Aureliana, the woman he left behind, and evidence that connects the present conspiracy to the trauma of his earlier service. The novel combines a criminal investigation with the practical problems of governing a distant province whose wealth, military security and divided loyalties are all under strain.