In the sticky summer heat unruly desires stir the blood ...For Catullus, the brilliantly witty and outrageous young poet, and Clodia, his older, married lover, a borrowed villa in Rome is a secret, illicit meeting-place. When they are apart, Catullus burns with desire for his girl, while Clodia goes her own way among his rivals. Other passions simmer in the heat: the streets threaten to erupt in political violence, hearts sour and contemplate murder, and love and hate are dangerously entwined. Catullus jealousy grows as toxic as hellebore or hemlock. Poisoning is a Roman art, and there is poison everywhere ...