Adored only child of King Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon, the young Princess Mary grows up as the sole heiress to the English throne. But her father wants a son, and soon Mary’s world begins to fall apart.

With her parents’ marriage – and England – in crisis, Mary is banished from the court and kept apart from the mother she adores. The King promises to restore her to favour, but first Mary must do something for which she will never forgive herself. She seeks solace in her faith. But when her brother Edward VI dies, she finds herself fighting for the crown – and for her very life.

Emerging triumphant, all seems fair for the reign of Queen Mary. And then, very quickly, things began to go badly wrong…Alison Weir’s new Tudor novel, a tale full of drama and tragedy, tells the story of how a princess with such promise, loved by all who knew her, becomes the infamous Bloody Mary.