Fiona Buckley

The eleventh enthralling adventure to feature Ursula Blanchard, reluctant spy in the service of Queen Elizabeth I
February, 1571. Ursula is once more plunged into affairs of the state when she escorts her foster daughter Margaret to the Netherlands to meet her suitor. The queen's spymaster, Sir William Cecil, learns that the wealthy Italian banker Roberto Ridolfi will be hosting their forthcoming wedding – a man who...

After receiving a threatening letter from the Countess of Norhumberland, Ursula Blanchard, special aide to Queen Elizabeth I, witnesses a series of strange events in her household and is soon accused of being a witch.

In To Shield the Queen, we were introduced to Ursula Blanchard, lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I and one of the most entrancing mystery heroines to come along in many a season. Having once saved the Virgin Queen from political disaster, now young Ursula faces an even greater challenge. Some of her old acquaintances may be plotting to overthrow Elizabeth in favor of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the re-establishment of the Catholic faith. Secretary...

In To Shield the Queen, we were introduced to Ursula Blanchard, lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth I and one of the most entrancing mystery heroines to come along in many a season. Having once saved the Virgin Queen from political disaster, now young Ursula faces an even greater challenge. Some of her old acquaintances may be plotting to overthrow Elizabeth in favor of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the re-establishment of the Catholic faith.

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"March, 1588. With England in a state of high alert as King Philip of Spain amasses a vast fleet of warships ready to invade, Queen Elizabeth and her advisors seek a possible alliance with the Duke of Parma, Governor of the Netherlands. But their plans suffer a major setback when one of their most reliable spies is found murdered in the Hertfordshire countryside, shot dead by a crossbow bolt as he was transporting secret correspondence between the...

"1594. Ursula Stannard is attending on her half-sister, Queen Elizabeth, when she receives an urgent summons from Sir Robert Cecil. Cornishman Master Roskilly was fished out of the sea by Sir Francis Godolphin, and has a shocking tale of being snatched by pirates and put on a slave vessel to Constantinople before his audacious escape. And he's not the only one . . . Folk in Cornwall are mysteriously disappearing. But why are only exceptional or unusual...

"May, 1586. Ursula and her retinue return home from a lengthy trip to discover she has an unexpected visitor. Etheldreda Hope is a simple countrywoman who has come to Ursula with disturbing tales of strange goings-on in her rural village. Fearing that Etheldreda's reports of mysterious forest rites indicate a possible conspiracy to overthrow Queen Elizabeth in favour of her cousin, Mary Stuart, the queen's spymaster, Sir Francis Walsingham, orders...

"March, 1581. Queen Elizabeth is once again being urged to consider marriage to the Duke of Alenc̦on, a French Catholic twenty years her junior. The prospect of the match is causing unrest throughout the kingdom. Ursula however has more immediate matters to worry about when her 9-year-old son is snatched away while out riding. If she is ever to see him again, Ursula must undertake an impossibly difficult and dangerous mission - and commit an act...

The year is 1560. The setting is the court of Queen Elizabeth. Ursula Blanchard, an impoverished young widow newly come to court, is sent to protect the queen's reputation by looking after Amy Robsart, wife of Sir Robert Dudley, courtier to the queen and prime subject of scandalous rumors swirling about the palace. When Amy is found lying with a broken neck at the bottom of a staircase, the future looks ominous for everyone involved.