What have I to wager? Three maids for a crown.
I cast them to fate in dark London town.
In an age where begetting sons was all that mattered and queens rose and fell on the sex of their child, three girls with royal Tudor blood were born to the Duke and Duchess of Suffolk, parents with a passion for gambling. The stakes they would wager-- their daughters’ lives against rampant ambition.
Lady Jane Grey: Fourth in line to inherit her great uncle Henry VIII’s throne. Jane’s parents (Henry and Frances Grey) are determined to make their shy, scholarly daughter queen of England. But when their plan to wed her to Henry’s son Edward fails, they strike a far deadlier bargain.
Lady Katherine Grey: Seeking solace in her love of pets, Katherine blossoms into the family beauty. To survive her family’s shifting fortunes Kat will become lady in waiting to the queen who executed her older sister, then serve Elizabeth Tudor who is determined to humble ‘the upstart Grey’. Burning under the humiliations Elizabeth deals her, Katherine comes close to stealing her cousin’s throne and risks the wrath of a queen for love.
Lady Mary Grey: A dwarf with a twisted spine, ‘Crouchback Mary’ never hopes to win a man’s devotion. Her blessing and her curse: intuition that helps her empathize with the tormented queen who executes her favorite sister. In an effort to protect people she loves, Mary will be the catalyst for disaster. But despite her sisters’ troubled fates, Mary will do the unthinkable. She suffers Elizabeth’s fury, but manages a triumph of the spirit that surprises the whole court.
Three sisters had no choice but to face the destinies written in their Tudor blood. The strongest shield they carried-- The knowledge that they could depend on each other.
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