Ursula Blanchard has a mandate from the secretary of state to spy on behalf of Queen Elizabeth I. Ursula now must travel to France, where civil war may break out at any moment. The mission to mediate peace between warring Protestant and Catholic factions seems clear, but there are hidden forces at work. Whom can Ursula trust? What will happen to her daughter if she fails?

FIONA BUCKLEY is a powerful voice in historical crime fiction, praised for her precise research and finely crafted writing. She lives in England.