Set between 1583 and 1586 during the reign of Elizabeth I, this is a true story of espionage and intrigue. At this time in England the war between Catholics and Protestants was undeclared, but there were those who would have the Protestant Elizabeth assassinated and the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, brought to the throne. Amongst the conspirators are poets, scholars and courtiers, but the intrigue centres around the identity of an informer to the Secretary of State. He was known as Henry Fagot, and the author of this book offers evidence pointing to his identity as Giordano Bruno, the most celebrated philosopher of his age. The book won the 1991 Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger for Non-Fiction and was joint winner of the 1991 Wolfson Foundation History Prize.