Book description
Perfect for fans of C. J. Sansom and The Name of the Rose, the third
historical thriller featuring Giordano Bruno, heretic, philosopher and spy.
In the pursuit of power, nothing is sacred…
Summer, 1584. The Protestant Prince William of Orange has been
assassinated by a fanatical Catholic, and there are whispers that Queen
Elizabeth will be next. Fear haunts the streets of London, and plague is
driving many citizens away.
Giordano Bruno, radical philosopher and spy, chooses to remain, only to
find that someone is following him through the city. Confronting his
stalker, he realizes it is the woman he once loved - she is on the run,
having been accused of murder.
Bruno travels to Canterbury to help clear her name, and also on behalf
of Sir Francis Walsingham. The Queen's spymaster has long suspected
Catholic influence in the ancient centre of pilgrimage, and instructs
Bruno to work to expose any enemy plots.
As Bruno begins his hunt for the real killer, he is drawn into the
heart of a sinister conspiracy hiding in the shadow of England's holiest
shrine… Praise for S. J. Parris:
• 'Impossible to resist … Parris creates a convincing sense of the
past, woven with so much intrigue that the head fairly spins' Daily Telegraph
• 'It has everything - intrigue, mystery and excellent history' Kate Mosse
• 'Parris writes with confident ease of Tudor London … The dialogue
balances nicely on a tightrope of period phrases and cut-to-the-chase
colloquialisms. More, please' The Times
• 'Full of surprises … an imaginatively satisfying addition to the many
real intrigues surrounding the imprisoned Mary Stuart and the threats to
Elizabeth's security' TLS
• 'Fascinating … The period is incredibly vivid and the story utterly
gripping' Conn Iggulden
• 'A brilliantly unusual glimpse at the intrigues surrounding Queen
Elizabth I' Andrew Taylor, bestselling author of The American Boy S.
J.Parris is the pseudonym of Stephanie Merritt. Since graduating from
Cambridge she has worked as a critic and feature writer for a variety of
newspapers and magazines as well as radio and television. She currently
writes for the Observer and the Guardian, and is the author of five
books and one son.
