A stunning novel set in the Tudor court from the Sunday Times No.1 bestseller Philippa Gregory. The rivalry between Queen Mary & her half-sister Elizabeth is played out against a background of betrayal conflict & passion. The savage rivalry of the daughters of Henry VIII Mary Tudor & Elizabeth mirrors that of their mothers Katherine of Aragon & Anne Boleyn. Each will fight by any available means for the crown & future of the kingdom. Elizabeth's bitter struggle to claim the throne she believes is hers by right & the man she desires almost more than her crown is watched by her 'fool': a girl who has been forced to leave her homeland of Spain as a Jew fleeing the Inquisition. In a court where truth is wittily denied & lies are mere games it is the fool who can speak plainly: in these dangerous times a woman must choose between ambition & love. Elizabeth will not make the same mistakes as her mother.