A foiled execution, a queen’s tense reign, and an unlikely romance: sparks fly between a hedonistic noble and a feisty activist in this thrilling historical tale from No.1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs.

Roguishly handsome Oliver de Lacey has always lived lavishly: wine, weapons and women are his by words. Even salvation from the noose by a shadowy society provides no epiphany to mend his debauched ways.

Mistress Lark’s sole passion is her secret work with a group of Protestant dissidents thwarting the queen’s executions. She needs no other excitement — until Oliver de Lacey drops through the hangman’s door and into her life.

As their fates become inextricably bound together in a struggle against royal persecution, both Oliver and Lark discover a love worth saving...even dying for.