The Storm of Heaven (Oaths of Empire)

"There's no doubt about it: Thomas Harlan is a marvelous talespinner."-Locus "Harlan's command of military strategy and tactics is thorough and vividly realized. When Roman and Persian armies clash in these pages, we can feel the dust sting our eyes and the ground shake beneath the rush of cavalry charges."--Amazing Stories

The great three-sided war continues, Rome gainst Persia against the tribes of the desert now commanded by Mohammed of Mekkah. The tide is turning against the Eastern Empire-the Emperor Heraclius lies bedridden in Constantinople and his brother Theodore has lost a great battle to the tribes. In the West, Rome lies devastated by the long pent eruption of Vesuvius. And in the hidden valley of the Damawand, the Persian sorcerer Dahak plots his revenge. But there is hope for the West, Prince Maxian, horrified at being the cause of so many deaths, has come to realise that the Oath need not be broken: it can be changed by a skilled sorcerer. In Judea, young Dwyrn is coming into his full powers, honed by sorceress, combat with his friend Odenathus, who now leads the shattered remnants of the army of Palmyra. And among the Goths north of the Danuvius, a new legion is being formed by a very old general.