Puffin's biggest-selling hardback debut of 2011. Recruited as a gladiator, young Marcus Cornelius Primus faces a new life of brutal training , governed by strict rules, as he learns the skills of an elite warrior. But Marcus cannot simply forget his past. His father lies murdered by soldiers and his mother has been kidnapped and forced into slavery. Yet, unbeknown to him, Marcus is hiding a life-threatening secret. And if the Romans discover it, there will be no escape. 'Will do for boy gladiators what JK Rowling did for boy wizards' }waterstones.com{