As Elizabethan England reels from the clash of religious and renaissance ideas, a young pregnant woman dies. Did jealousy kill her - or science? Doctor William Gilbert is the epitome of the renaissance scientist. Interested in philosophy and true science, he is broad minded when it comes to religion and sceptical of the revered ancients. To Dr Gilbert, rationality is all. However, Dr Gilbert is also ambitious, and when his friend offers him a job tending a rich man's pregnant wife, William seizes the chance with his eyes on a prosperous future. But when the beautiful young bride is found...