When the ground shakes in her home town of Pompeii, Claudia, a baker’s daughter, is convinced that it is a bad omen. And when she sees that the crack in the atrium wall has grown bigger, she feels certain that the town is in grave danger. But what is the danger that threatens them? And why does no one believe her, except Aengus, a British slave, and Ancient, a blind beggar.  Will Claudia be able to persuade her family to leave  Pompeii before it is too late?