After three marriages, Ursula Blanchard Stannard is ready to settle down with her young son Harry and breed horses on her two estates. But the Queen and the heads of her spy networks, Cecil and Walsingham have other plans for her. In the fourteenth outing of her Elizabethan mystery series, A Perilous Alliance (#560), Fiona Buckley has created another mission for Ursula; one only she is capable of performing. To cement a relationship between France and England against Catholic Spain, Elizabeth's ministers have proposed a marriage between Ursula, the Queen's illegitimate half-sister, and Count Gilbert Renard, the illegitimate son of King Henri II.
Much as Ursula wishes to refuse her sister's request, she is ultimately persuaded to go through with it for the good of England. She cannot like him but while rumors swirl around court that there is a spy in their midst Ursula begins to suspect that it might be one of the Count's party. When one of her servants dies in a fall down the staircase of her Hawkwood estate, Ursula's suspicions are confirmed. What perils await her upon her marriage to Count Renard? Nothing goes as planned, though none of Ursula's household believe they will ever see home again...
A number of twists and turns in this page-turning adventure where Ursula's skills in spy craft are used in unexpected ways, and she encounters some unlikely allies. The best thing about this book is that it can be read as a stand-alone; though once you've met the cast of characters here, you'll probably want to further your acquaintance with them by reading some of the earlier books. A really enjoyable series.
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