Two women fighting for one man. Two queens competing for dominance. One remarkable woman who will die rather than deny her principles or need for freedom.

Mary Queen of Scots is in flight from rebels in Scotland. She has trusted her cousin Elizabeth I's promise of sanctuary, only to find herself imprisoned as the enforced guest of George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, and his dominant wife, Bess of Hardwick.

The newly married couple welcome the doomed queen, certain that serving as her hosts and jailors will bring them nothing but advantage in the competitive world of Tudor England. To their horror they find that their home becomes the epicentre of intrigue against Elizabeth, and even their own loyalty comes under suspicion. If their marriage is threatened by George's hopeless admiration for the beautiful young queen, they will face ruin. But if his devotion to the Queen of England is compromised by his love for the Queen of Scots, he will face the gallows.

The English lords conspire with Spain, the Duke of Northumberland and the Northern eearls to free Mary from imprisonment, a plot that will be the greatest threat Elizabeth has ever faced. But then the great spy-master Cecil sets the trap to catch them all, setting the Scots queen on the road to her death at Fotheringhay.