The acclaimed author of The Sunne in Splendor and Falls the Shadow now begins a new trilogy, set in medieval England, during a time of royal turmoil and intrigue, and following the lives and passions of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. 2 maps; genealogy. Gilded top stain cover; ribbon marker. nA.D. 1135. As church bells tolled for the death of Englands King Henry I, his barons faced the unwelcome prospect of being ruled by a woman: Henrys beautiful daughter Maude, Countess of Anjou. But before Maude could claim her throne, her cousin Stephen seized it. In their long and bitter struggle, all of England bled and burned. nSharon Kay Penmans magnificent fifth novel summons to life a spectacular medieval tragedy whose unfolding breaks the heart even as it prepares the way for splendors to come--the glorious age of Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Plantagenets that would soon illumine the world.n