Tyrian purple, the colour that denotes Byzantine imperial power is embargoed and under close guard in Byzantium. To steal it is punishable by death.

However a Jewish merchant from Venice has sourced an illegal supply and Tobias, a minstrel, and his twin brother, Tomas, begin a dangerous journey to retrieve the dye and deliver it into the merchant's eager hands.

But is this supply as secret as they had hoped?

Set in the venal underbelly of twelfth century trade In Constantinople, Tobias is a story about murder, theft and revenge. Tobias, a man with the size, wit and gall of Tyrion Lannister, and who has the heart of a lion and the sensibility of saint, is about to be tested to the death.

'Authentic characters and a twisting plot move this tale to a gripping end.' Christian Cameron, author of The Chivalry Series

'Although the time and the place of the story is very different, there was something ... that reminded me of the great Patrick O'Brian. For historical fiction, there is really no greater praise.' Matthew Harffy - The Bernicia Chronicles.

'An atmospheric journey through the seedy underbelly of medieval Europe.' SJA Turney, author of Marius's Mules.

'Tobias by Prue Batten is an epic tale of courage, rebellion, helping the right and fighting the wrong. With crisp dialogues and genuine emotions, Batten has created characters that will live for a very long time in your mind...' Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite, USA