Warning: Reading Rufius may induce forbidden thoughts. Also laughter, wonderment, and a discombobulating sensation of time travel. Proceed with caution—but by all means, proceed!' Steven Saylor

In 4th century Alexandria, a poor orphan learns to scribe. Meanwhile Rufius, a rich Roman, tends the books in his care and yearns for the youth on the streets. It's a time of rampant bishops, mad heretics, and a city so ruled by passion it is set to consume itself along with the world's greatest library. As the poor boy and the rich Roman unite, hell almost literally breaks loose.

In this startlingly fine debut, Sarah Walton steps into the classic terrain of Mary Renault and Margeurite Yourcenar. Like them, she stirs a spectacular story of the Ancient World. Unlike them, her lead character is not one of history's heroes. For the first time in literature, a cinaedus steps front stage. Sexually, Ancient Rome ran by a different moral code. One thing firmly outlawed was the passive male. Exiled to 4th Century Alexandria, put in charge of books while zealots set to burn libraries, Rufius is only passive sexually. He is an irrepressible creation. Searching the streets for a youth that excites, he finds Aeson. Their love story transcends age, scruples, class barriers, and the historical record.