In this, the second of Margaret Irwin's great trilogy about the life of 'Good Queen Bess', Elizabeth I, the imperious, high spirited heroine of Young Bess finds herself the prey of her sister Mary's jealous suspicions. The death of her young brother, Edward IV; the accession of Bloody Mary; the execution of Lady Jane Grey; her own imprisonment in the Tower of London; and the arrival of Philip of Spain to marry Queen Mary provide the powerful background to Irwin's masterful novel as Elizabeth strives to achieve her ambition, the Crown of England.