Passion and deception amid the shadowy court of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II.

An honorable man: Malcolm de Monde, Lord of Warwick needs a wife. He reluctantly journeys to the turbulent royal court where his plan is simple: find a dutiful woman, gain the king's approval for his choice and return to Warwick with his lady wedded, bedded, and carrying his heir-all before winter.

An independent woman: Judith of Kentworth, Royal Falconer and lady-in-waiting, is a woman from Malcolm's past. Although she is a confidante of the queen, Judith's beauty...