Shields of Sorrow

Life under Macedonia rule of ancient Sparta was tenuous at best and the Spartan people were little more than chattel. Spartan men were judged guilty without trial and were executed at will. Spartan women were worthless slaves free to be raped and discarded like garbage. The few Spartans who dared resist were slaughtered on the spot. Even in the midst of this carnage, love could not be extinguished as Hippomedon, a disenchanted Spartan aristocrat, found the warm and welcoming arms of Zara, a Jewish woman from Jerusalem. Together, they struggled to avoid the displeasure of their Macedonian conquerors. Unable to over the false accusations of a local merchant who had the ears of the alien rulers, Hippomedon and Zara found it necessary to flee their home, along with their young son, and to seek shelter in a distant desert village. However, events have a way of interrupting the best of plans.