England, 1601.Treason threatens the realm.When the body of a Scottish envoy washes up on the banks of the Thames, the Queen's most powerful spymaster, Robert Cecil, is accused of arranging the murder. Cecil turns to his covert intelligencer Sophia de Wolfe to discreetly discover what the dead man was doing in London, and why he was killed.

But this murder is borne of treacherous political currents. As loyalties shift and rebellion foments, and the Earl of Essex makes a dangerous play for power, Sophia is fast drawn into perilous waters.

Everyone wants the Queen's hard-won favour, even as tensions rise and the country begins to look for new answers. And Sophia has her own secrets to hide...