A child prodigy is kidnapped, saved by an ancient vampire who trains him in music to become the consort of Caesar.
THE SLAVE OF ATHENIODONIS is a historical drama/horror story of approx.100,000 words.
The backdrop of this epic is the entire Mediterranean World; from the moss-covered rocks of Britannia to mysterious land of Egypt. From the Pillars of Hercules to the Euphrates River.
The time is the 2nd Century CE and life exists on the edge of a sword. Enduring a tumultuous
childhood is NOVOS of Zankinthois, a remarkable musical child rescued by ATHENIODONIS, a twenty thousand year old soulless being. Not of flesh, but of stone- who must consume man as easily as he nurtures him. Novos defends his own life- being the SLAVE OF ATHENIODONIS, rising to become the lover and companion of Hadrian, Emperor of Rome. But how can passion endure when power shifts with the rise and fall of the sun? Some devotions will flourish, while some will die without knowing.
It works easily as a Trilogy. Each chapter is like a short story- with a beginning, middle and an end.
Yet they are connected by characters and locations. Some fictitious, interwoven with the rest based on factual Roman history and events. Power, love and survival are challenged by greed, revenge and violence. Similar to the dramas that are played out in our world today.
As Anne Rice successfully tapped into the immense curiosity of vampires, THE SLAVE OF
ATHENIODONIS goes further with beings not made from mortals, but formed rather from the essence of the Cosmos. Mercury flows through their veins. However they are few and far between, with many unsuccessful attempts to transform humans into these “Watchers of the World.” And like the intrigue and deviousness of “I, Claudius” and stories such as “Gladiator,” this story delves into the cruel underbelly of Roman rulers- their allies and those who would have them murdered.
The story dares to ask- does love exist? And in a world of so much death, who is the real monster?
Man or Immortal?