Two rival queens. History's greatest playwright. And a deadly plot for the crown.

London, 1600. With no legitimate heir to Queen Elizabeth's throne, and no clear successor, England finds itself in a supremely perilous moment.

When spymaster Anthony Bacon commands esteemed playwright William Shakespeare to write a play on the poisonous history of Queen Elizabeth and the rival monarch she executed, Catholic Mary Queen of Scots, Will knows that Elizabeth's one-time favorite, the powerful Earl of Essex, will use the play to try to seize her throne.

Must Will be ensnared in a ruthless plot fated to tumble his country into civil war? Or can he navigate a treacherous path through the dark warrens of London and the tortuous world of Elizabethan politics to save his family, his country, and his Queen?