When Tiro; the confidential secretary of a Roman senator; opens the door to a terrified stranger on a cold November morning; he sets in motion a chain of events which will eventually propel his master into one of the most famous courtroom dramas in history. The stranger is a Sicilian; a victim of the island's corrupt Roman governor; Verres. The senator is Cicero; a brilliant young lawyer and spellbinding orator; determined to attain imperium - supreme power in the state. This is the starting-point of Robert Harris's most accomplished novel to date. Compellingly written in Tiro's voice; it takes us inside the violent; treacherous world of Roman politics; to describe how one man - clever; compassionate; devious; vulnerable - fought to reach the top.