A sweeping historical novel set in Constantinople at the time of the CrusadesConstantinople, 1179Princess Agnes of France is thirteen when she marries the heir to Byzantium, and empire unmatched in wealth, power - and glamour.But once she sets foot in the Queen of Cities, a decadent world where dazzling luxury masks unspeakable cruelty, she realises that her husband has mighty enemies and treacherous allies.As emperors rise and fall, Agnes learns to play the City's game - until she falls for a handsome rebel and finds that love is the most perilous game of all.Glittering parties in marble palaces soon give way to bloody revolution, shipwreck and exile, and Agnes discovers there is no limit to what she will do to survive.But only when crusading knights from her homeland attack the City does she finally understand what is truly worth fighting for.
Constantinople, 1179
Princess Agnes of France is thirteen when she is sent to marry Alexios, heir to Byzantium, an empire unmatched in wealth, power - and glamour.
But her husband is a deluded weakling with mighty enemies and treacherous allies, and Agnes must learn to play the City's game before it devours her.
Trapped in a court simmering with intrigue, she faces down bloody revolution, shipwreck and exile - and discovers there is no limit to what she will do to survive. Even betray the man she loves.
It's not until crusading knights from her homeland attack the City that she finally understands what is truly worth fighting for.
