First in a new historical mystery series featuring Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII and matriarch of the Tudor dynasty

'Doherty, the master of the historical whodunit' Booklist

'His fascination for history comes off the page' Daily Express

'Doherty excels in grafting a fair-play whodunit onto actual historical events' Publishers Weekly

London, 1471. The War of the Roses rages on . . .

Edward of York has claimed the English throne and his Yorkist supporters gleefully slaughter their adversaries; there's no mercy for anyone who supported the Lancastrian cause.

Margaret Beaufort - mother of Henry Tudor, the only hope for the House of Lancaster - knows her enemies are closing in. Desperate for help she turns to Christopher Urswicke for protection. But when ruthless scheming and pitiless killings are the only routes to survival, Urswicke will have to choose where his loyalties truly lie.