This is a compelling historical novel from a much-loved author It is 1567. A young man - Lachlan Gilmore - rescues a lady whose cart has become stuck in a ditch, setting in motion a chain of events that will have consequences not only for himself, but for his whole family. For, unbeknownst to Lachlan, Lady Annabel Erskine, a merchant's daughter, has arrived with a secret mission: to keep Mary, Queen of Scots, who has been imprisoned on Castle Island in Lochleven, supplied with garments fit for her high estate. Soon, Lachlan's sister, talented seamstress Christina, is assisting Lady Annabel in her work - telling herself that it is an invitation to sew, not to meddle in state affairs. But as their friendship grows, she is unwittingly drawn deeper into the doomed Queen's affairs...