It wasn't all sandals alongside the swords ...

Sharp-eyed readers who’ve already downloaded my new Roman mystery The Loyal Centurion will have spotted that in a burst of authorial malevolence I’ve sent Quintus and Tiro to York and on to Scotland in midwinter. Of course they aren’t wearing little leather skirts, open sandals and bare hairy legs. By the third century, soldiers stationed in the further provinces of the empire would have worn clothing better suited to northern climates.

They would have looked more like this veteran of the contemporary Severan period, portrayed by Graham Sumner in his recent book Roman Military Clothing (2). The soldier’s wearing a long-sleeved tunic, breeches with a kind of puttees, and stout closed leather boots. In winter minus the summer hat, and plus a long thick cloak known as a caracalla, after the popular dead emperor.

Even so, midwinter Scotland will be a considerable challenge for my heroes as they make their way from Castleford and York, heading for Tayside via Vindolanda, Trimontium in the Borders, Cramond (Edinburgh), and so on to Carpow Roman fort near Abernethy.

[Me, at Castlelaw Hillfort in January 2023. There are actually bits of hail there too.]

Winter travel turned out to be quite a challenge for me too, when I was planning plot timings. Once beyond what the Romans called the Aelian Wall (after Hadrian’s family name), any roads built and rebuilt by the army for the Severan campaigns of AD 208-211 would have quickly deteriorated due to the severe climate and lack of maintenance.

I assumed that such deterioration would also apply to the abandoned Roman forts, and the civilian settlements around them. I expected to find they too had quickly been deserted. But both author and characters were surprised to find on investigation that some village settlements, such as Cramond (modern Edinburgh), lingered and even thrived, long after the soldiers had gone.

Nevertheless, travel in ancient Scotland was not to be undertaken lightly, especially in winter. I began to despair of getting my men back to York any time that century, assuming they even survived the story! And then … I came up with a very cunning plan. I shall say no more. Hopefully you’ll enjoy the timing rabbit I pulled out of the hat to get the plot lines all tied off by chapter 30.

Lovely reviews for the third Quintus Valerius mystery are coming in already. Ahead of the pack is this wonderful 5* review by the erudite Classicist Sestius (aka Roman author Fiona Forsyth, she of the highly-regarded Lucius Sestius trilogy):

Book three of this fascinating and intelligent series is the best so far. Pace and energy are maintained, plotting as meticulous and thoughtful as ever. There’s a feeling I always get with Rogers that I’m reading the adult equivalent of those favourite childhood novels by such masters as Rosemary Sutcliff or Barbara Willard. I particularly appreciate Rogers’ realistic portrayal of female characters in a milieu where women all too often are just pushed to the side because they can’t handle a sword and the writer can’t think of a role for them.

Be prepared for a mystery, a conspiracy, a quest and a breath-taking finale!

The Loyal Centurion is out now. Download for Kindle here; paperback coming shortly.

Other August news

• I went to Swanwick Writers’ Summer School, where I spent a wonderful few days catching up with old and new friends. Less wonderfully, I came home with my second dose of Covid: an old acquaintance I had been desperately avoiding by not attending Swanwick for four years. You can’t win ‘em all.

  

  [Pictured with me, l to r, are my Swanwick Sisters and fellow novelists Jo Fenton, Lynn Johnson and Val Penny. Excellent writers all!]

• Free Prize Draw: I’m currently celebrating the publication of The Loyal Centurion with a book prize draw on my social media. You’ll have to hurry, as the draw ends at noon on Thursday 7 September. It’s for UK residents only, the prize is your choice of either The Governor’s Man or The Carnelian Phoenix, plus a map, cast list and special bookmark to accompany your choice. To enter, follow me on either Instagram or my Facebook Author Page, and follow the instructions. Good luck!

• No need for Aussie and Kiwi readers to feel left out, though. I have a special offer for you too. My first book, The Governor’s Man, is now Kindle Book of the Month, right through September. You can begin the adventures for only $Aus1.49.

  Click here for link. And read free on Kindle Unlimited, of course.

• Talking of links, I’ve updated all the little extra resources I’ve made for the three books. If you’ve always wondered where Vebriacum is, who Morcant is related to, or even pondered how Julia got home from Massilia to Bol harbour, the tab is on the top menu bar of this blogsite. Or just click here.

• My tour to promote the new book is beginning to take shape. So far, we have a firm date of 1 June 2024 at the splendid Castleford Roman Festival , when I’ll be talking about how I researched my first port of call (known as Lagentium to Quintus and Tiro), and why it’s so important for my plot. I’m hoping to take advantage of the traditionally glorious Scottish May weather to call in at Abernethy Museum, possibly at the MacManus Museum at Dundee, and maybe at Dunfermline too. More to come on the Scottish tour plans.

• I’m also discussing more local talks round the Malvern area, so watch out for those announcements too.

Thank you for reading my final summer blog. Now we can all settle down into autumn with apples, a hot drink, a cosy fire, and our to-be-read piles of books. If you’re already reading The Loyal Centurion, thank you.

If you’re awaiting the print version, as I know many of you are, I’ll send out a newsflash when the paperbacks are available.

Enjoy, either way, and please leave me a rating/review on Amazon and Goodreads. They make such a difference to the little algorithm thingies!