February, 1577.Sir William Cecil has a dangerous new mission for Ursula Blanchard. He has asked her to visit Stonemoor House on the bleak Yorkshire moors, the home of a group of recusant women led by Abbess Philippa Gould. In their possession is an ancient book, and the Queen s advisor, Dr John Dee, is eager to get hold of it.
However, while the Abbess is anxious to sell the book, others such as her half-sister Bella believe it to be heretical and demand that it be burned. It is not Sir William s first attempt to secure the book. His two previous emissaries vanished without trace. What happened to them and will Ursula suffer the same fate?