1368, Northern Italy. As the Hundred Years’ War smoulders, the Duke of Clarence, second son of Edward III, sets out from Paris to wed the Lord of Milan’s daughter. The union could forge an alliance as vital as any victory on the battlefield. But the road to Milan is a road to betrayal. Riding ahead is Sir Thomas Blackstone, the legendary Master of War. Blackstone is tasked with securing the gold that, together with the marriage alliance, will fuel the House of Plantagenets’ fight against France. But with a bounty on his head, Blackstone will have to outthink and outfight foes deadlier than any he has faced before. Yet the gravest threat may lie closer to home. Blackstone’s son, Henry, has inherited his father’s unerring fate to walk where peril waits.
