This book is the second installment in the historical fiction saga, "The Life of Marek Zaczek." It follows the life of this young Polish peasant boy from his birth in 1772 through the era of the Partitions of Poland, and on through the Napoleonic Wars which he becomes immersed in. Volume 2 "Embers of Love and War" picks up a few years after Volume 1 "Under the Wings of Eagles." As volume 2 opens, Marek is 32 years old and serving in Napoleon's Army under General Dabrowski's Polish Legions. This volume closes as Napoleon enters Warsaw in December of 1806 and the beginning of January 1807. This work historically focuses on the Rise of Napoleon, his ascension to being coronated as Emperor of the French, and his navy's dramatic encounters with Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson. The romantic relationships are detailed of Admiral Nelson with Lady Emma Hamilton, and Napoleon with, first, Josephine, and later with the Polish Countess Marie Walewska. The continuation of the fictional romance of Marek and Maya is threaded throughout the novel.