The Natron Smugglers

The Natron Smugglers
Author: Michael Taylor
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 238
Release: 2007-10-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1430312033

In A.D. 176, Renny (Eireneios) became a sailor at the age of 15 aboard a ship of the grain fleet that traveled from Alexandria to Rome. He survived a storm at sea and capture by pirates. Then his older brother Polo, a centurion, recruited him to become a 'friend of Caesar' to help snare the gang of smugglers who were using that ship. But his mission was discovered, and some gladiators who were part of the gang forced him into the equipment of a retiarius, a net-and-trident fighter, and sent him into the arena. Now he must enter into combat against the smugglers' leader, an experienced swordsman and killer.

A Shadow of the Plan - second edition

A Shadow of the Plan - second edition
Author: Alfred Lockweed
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 234
Release: 2016-07-02
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1365424448

This is a collection of four unrelated items: a whimsical setting of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in a prairie dog town, a series of dreams stitched into a narrative, a dialogue on science among a foursome in a tavern, and finally a collection of short poems.

The Tombs of Alexandria

The Tombs of Alexandria
Author: Michael Taylor
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 258
Release: 2007-09-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1430313161

It is the year A.D. 176; two boys leave their home town of Karanis far up the Nile and sail downriver to Alexandria on the coast. Renny has hopes of becoming a sailor and Lampon the Mouse Catcher is on a mission to persuade his father to return home from the temple of Serapis. Renny has no money for travel until he discovers a precious gem in a cave and sells it to Theodotus the Thief Catcher. Renny and Lampon sail to Alexandria, but soon after their arrival in the city they come to suspect that Theodotus has been murdered by the runaway slave Hermon. The reward for Hermon's capture gives Lampon another motive for catching him, though Renny is not so sure that this is any of their business. They chase Hermon into the underground cisterns and hunt him through the dark chambers of the tombs. The pursuers become the pursued, and Renny and Lampon are captured and thrown into prison. Finally they all confront one another at the top of the Pharos, the famous lighthouse in the harbor of Alexandria.

Daggers and Ink

Daggers and Ink
Author: Michael Taylor
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2007-09-20
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1430313145

Polo (Apolinaris) lives in the little farm town of Karanis, far up the Nile, in the year 173 A.D. A family friend, a retired Roman officer, has written letters of recommendation for him so that he can join the Praetorian Fleet, and now he is on his way to Alexandria, on the coast of Egypt, as the first stage of his journey to Rome. But the officer included a mysterious list of names along with his letters, and someone wants it destroyed. Brigands attack Polo and his party in the desert, someone pushes him into a pool full of crocodiles, and finally a traveling companion steals the list. River pirates assault the boat carrying Polo and his friend Apion down the Nile, and elsewhere Antonius Longus - the boy who stole the list - finds that joining a conspiracy against Rome is not as simple as he thought. The three meet again in the baths of Alexandria, where an agent of the prefect of Egypt chases the conspirators and tries to reclaim the list.

Caravan

Caravan
Author: Dorothy Gilman
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2020-06-30
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0593159500

“A lushly romantic adventure story set in the North African desert in 1914, told by the impeccable Lady Treal as she reminisces in her London town house about her decidedly peccable past . . . Well-written, expertly plotted, perfectly paced.”—Newsday With her anthropologist husband murdered and their caravan stolen by fierce Tuareg tribesmen, Caressa has two choices: death or a life of slavery. Concealing her dangerous beauty beneath the faded robes of an Arab boy, she embarks on the adventure of her life, harassed by vicious nomads, slave traders and the envious witch doctor, Isa. Only a handful of carnival magic tricks stands between her and oblivion. Then she discovers an inner magic so mysteriously compelling that the desert people call her a sorceress. . . . “Sheer reading pleasure.”—Publishers Weekly