Publisher's Synopsis
A pair of stolen idols and a mound of bones may spell doom for Jim and Tanny.
It is ten years since that deadly trip up Mount Aetna, but can archaeologists Tanaquil Greenough-Lewis and James Pericles Lewis now defeat death itself? For doctors say Jim has inherited his mother's heart disease and may not live out the year.
Faced with the permanent closure of the La Castellina archaeological site, however, the Lewises agree to return to Italy once more, to investigate the site's three remaining features-the weird Tomb of Sychaeus, the Tofet cave, and the looming Place of Sacrifice-or to die in the attempt.
Meanwhile, another and more human danger stalks them and those they care for, seeking revenge for perceived past wrongs.
First, their friend Franco is framed for murder. Then they themselves are nearly poisoned. Finally, when Tanny is away in England, Jim falls prey to what seems like a freak accident while digging at the site. Too late, it is clear he has caught a deadly, ancient plague, and all his family can do is watch and wait for the end to come.
On what seems to be the last sad vigil, however, Tanny receives an email that could change everything. In just twelve hours, however, she must find a pair of miraculous healing stones, call in all the favors she needs, and rescue some missing persons along the way. But when dawn comes and she makes her own grim sacrifice, how can Tanny be sure it was all enough to save her best beloved, if she herself doesn't survive?
