Succession

'A twisting fast-paced plot.' Jemahl Evans, author of Becket: Warrior

'A gripping and finely-crafted account.' Paul Walker, author of State of Treason

1603.

The Virgin Queen is dying. She has yet to nominate an heir.

The crown looks set to fall to James of Scotland.

But it is far from inevitable.

Gowrie, a sinister Scottish traitor, has arrived in England. On him is a document containing a shocking secret that will compromise King James.

Languishing in prison, artful thief Ned Savage is freed by his patron, the queen's principal secretary, Sir Robert Cecil. His mission is to find the document before it can be made public. If he succeeds, his life will be spared.

But he is not alone in seeking Gowrie.

On his trail are a ruthless gang of conspirators. The Red Cross Plot aims to prevent any foreigner from taking the English throne. And the Knights of the Red Cross will kill to secure the document.

In a journey that will take him from London to Derbyshire and Scotland, Savage must foil the Red Cross Plot, protect King James's darkest secret, and keep himself safe from execution.

And he must do it all before the curtain falls on Elizabeth's reign.

Steven Veerapen was born in Glasgow and raised in Paisley. Pursuing an interest in the sixteenth century, he was awarded a first-class Honours degree in English, focussing his dissertation on representations of Henry VIII's six wives. He then received a Masters in Renaissance studies, and a Ph. D. investigating Elizabethan slander. Steven is fascinated by the glamour and ghastliness of life in the 1500s.

Praise for Steven Veerapen:

A DANGEROUS TRADE

'A slow-burn character driven spy story that grips like a thumbscrew tightened by twist after twist towards the end - Le Carre transported to the 1560's. Brilliant work, based in impressively wide research and the kind of competition that I and a good number of others could well do without!' Peter Tonkin

THE ABBEY CLOSE (BOOK ONE OF THE SIMON DANFORTH MYSTERIES)

'The author balances gimlet-eyed research with narrative drive and clever reveals... Danforth is a strong yet torn central character... I look forward to reading the second book in the series.' Richard Foreman

BLOOD FEUD: MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS AND THE EARL OF MORAY

'Much-needed analysis of a sinister sibling rivalry.' Marie Macpherson

ELIZABETH AND ESSEX: POWER, PASSION AND POLITICS

'A sensitive and lively account of one of the most politically significant relationships of the Elizabethan age.' Lisa Hopkins