Sutcliff essentially doing in short story what she has done with some of her books, create a family with some sort of family talisman that is passed from generation to generation, and via the family members who now possess the item, tell the tale of Britain in that time. In this case, the talisman is a Roman Legionnaire's silver bracelet for meritorious conduct, which rather than being buried with him is passed to his son. The period covered begins with the generation that won the bracelet, and carries through to Magnus Maximus Emperor of the West, AD 387, and his failed attempt to go after Theodosius in Italy. The first story is placed in London at the time of Boudicca's attack (60 AD), when the Legionnaire was a boy, the next story is up at Hadrian's wall during its building, and the rest of the stories are at or near that wall.The stories are enjoyable, and per usual for Sutcliff well written. She keeps the language basic and first person, so that I would say the stories are suitable for a middle school reader.
