Primary-school aged friends Caro and Paul and police dog Benno are transported to ancient Rome by a magic coin. They meet Roman children Flavia and Titus who invite them to their house and tell them about gold-thieves who are burgling Roman houses. The children and Benno spy on the household slave Rufus meeting a stranger and overhear them talking about gold. They suspect that those two are the gold-thieves.

At dinner, Flavia’s and Titus’ father Marcus tells the children about gladiators fighting lions in the arena. The children notice that the slave Rufus is extremely nervous. They see him leave, pursue him and again spy on him meeting the stranger. We now learn that the stranger is Rufus’ older brother. The children watch Rufus and his brother break into a villa. Titus and Flavia run home to tell their father to alert the guards. Caro and Paul follow the thieves into the house and watch them disable a snake trap in order to open a chest of gold. We now find out that Rufus’ brother is a famous gladiator called Primus. The brothers are forced to steal because Primus is being blackmailed by a man called Servius. Should Primus refuse to pay Servius, he will send two lions into the arena with Primus instead of one. The thieves detect Caro and Paul, Primus threatens them with a sword, but Rufus recognises the children. At that moment, the guards arrive. Caro and Paul tell the thieves to flee. The two men escape over the roof. The children mislead the guards as to the direction the slaves have taken.

The next morning, the thieves send the children a message written on a stone, telling them that they made it to safety and thanking them. The children say goodbye and Caro, Paul and Benno are transported back to their own time.

This is an exciting mystery story for early readers from 6-8 years of age with a quasi-didactic purpose of educating children in the social history of ancient Rome. Most of this story is set in ancient Rome and can be used as an introduction into some aspects of ancient Roman daily life. We meet a Roman family and their slave, a gladiator and Roman guards. We hear about Roman foods, gladiators are mentioned, as well as other details of Roman everyday life, such as that houses were lit by torches. The illustrations provide more information: Roman clothing (tunics, toga, gladiator’s outfit, Roman guards in uniform including spear and helmet), Roman houses, Roman statues, columns, amphorae, a throw with a Roman-style decorative border, and a Roman coin with Julius Caesar, a picture of Caesar in a modern book (which helps the children identify the coin), an aqueduct, an arena with fighting gladiators, graffiti referring to a gladiator, a gladius, a slave serving typical Roman food (bread, olives).