Against the seething political intrigues of twelfth-century Europe, two royal heirs will surrender to passion as they vie for the most glittering, treacherous prize of all: the English throne At nine, Maud, an English princess, was sent to Germany to become the bride of the Holy Roman Emperora political alliance with a man her father's age. At twenty-five, the widowed Maud must marry once again, this time to fourteen-year-old Geoffrey Plantagenet....

In the 12th Century, a king's daughter and her cousin fight for the crown of England. She is Maude, the only legitimate daughter of 23 children sired by Henry I. He is Stephen of Blois, who in a daring move seizes the crown. The people accept him, but Maude will obtain revenge through her son, the future Henry II.