by Emily Dexter
First published 2026
Locusta watches Roman soldiers slaughter her mother and burn her Gaulish home. The last Druid with the power to commune with spirits and craft deadly poisons, she becomes a slave in the empire's capital. The god of death Arawn guides her through Rome's treacherous political landscape, where her rare talents make her valuable to the elite. By day she serves as lady-in-waiting to Livia, the Emperor's ambitious cousin. By night she works as a poisoner for the cunning Antonia Augusta. Locusta plots revenge against those who destroyed her people while falling deeply in love with Livia. Their forbidden romance grows dangerous as Emperor Caligula becomes increasingly unstable. Enemies multiply in every corner of the palace. Locusta must use her knowledge of deadly substances to protect both herself and the woman she loves. Her survival depends on mastering the brutal world that enslaved her while keeping her true nature hidden from those who would destroy her.
Genres: historical-fiction, adult-fiction, dark-fantasy, fantasy-romance, historical-drama
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotionally-intense, gritty, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, forbidden-romance, forced-proximity, hidden-identity, revenge-plot
Setting: Rome, Gaul, Roman Empire
Period: 1st century, Roman Imperial Period
368 pages · Paperback · Hay House LLC
Content warnings: death, murder, slavery, violence