Secretly, however, Mary recognizes herself as Queen of Scotland (since she was born to it), France (since she married to it), and England (since Elizabeth's paternity and her mother's marriage to her father is questionable).

Mary is indignant at the captivity, repeatedly stating her royal status, and is upset when she is given some of the reigning queen's gowns to wear, saying that they are "hand-me-downs."

Most of the novel centers around the first few years of Mary's Stuart's imprisonment, during which time she makes several failed escape attempts and almost immediately begins to seduce the earl.

George slowly begins to feel his loyalty to Elizabeth fade, replaced by a strong attachment to the captive queen.

AudioFile magazine praised the narrators of the audiobook recording (Dagmara Dominczyk as Mary, Graeme Malcolm as George and Bianca Amato as Bess), writing: Dominczyk's understated French accent is ideal for a queen born to entitlement, and her flashes of irritability and impertinence enhance Mary's royal persona.