Set in Scotland during the reign of Mary Queen of Scots,
Rinette Leslie of Granmuir has the gift of seeing into the
future by hearing the voices of flowers. The voices will
eventually predict the tragic future of Scotland's queen. As
a young girl, Rinette was sent to court to serve the Queen
Regent, Mary of Guise. As Mary lay on her death bed, she
begs Rinette to remove a casket of letters from court meant
for the future Queen. The casket contains ciphered letters
penned by Nostradamus which prophesied the queen's future.
Rinette agrees to steal the precious letters from court, but
she cannot even begin to fathom the burden and curse she has
accepted: a curse which will follow her until the letters
are safely delivered to the new queen. Rinette fiercely
resented being taken from her beautiful seaside castle named
Granmuir. But Rinette especially resented the separation
from the only man she has ever loved, Alexander Gordon.
After the Queen Regent dies, Rinette is allowed to return to
Granmuir and Alexander. But their happiness is short lived
when the Earl of Rothes announces that Rinette must marry
Rannoch Hamilton. Rinette and Alexander barely escape with
their lives when Rannoch stops their wedding and attempts to
abduct Rinette. Although Rinette and Alexander realize their
lifelong dream of being husband and wife, Alexander is
murdered soon after the wedding. The search for Alexander's
murderer consumes Rinette, even as she struggles to save her
own life.
After Alexander's death, Rinette is forced to marry Rannoch.
Rinette's only hope of escaping her abusive marriage is by
giving the Queen the casket of letters she knows Rinette
holds in her possession. After suffering unspeakable cruelty
from her husband, Rinette makes a pact with the Queen. If
Rinette produces the letters, the Queen will grant Rinette a
divorce and allow her to return to Granmuir. But when
Rinette returns to the hiding place where she left the
letters, she discovers they have been stolen. Rinette must
find the letters if she hopes the escape her violent and
dangerous husband. Rinette finds unexpected help in a
handsome frenchman named Nicolas de Clerac. Rinette vowed
never to love again, but when Nicolas saves her life time
and time again, he becomes the only person Rinette can
trust. But Rinette will do anything to stop herself from
giving Nicolas her heart, especially when he admits to
keeping a secret that he can never reveal.
Sexy, manipulative, and dangerous --- Loupas has written
Mary Queen of Scots at her best! It was refreshing to read a
novel about Mary without her English cousin, Queen
Elizabeth. Elizabeth Loupas cleverly created a murder
mystery, which the readers will emotionally connect with.
Although Alexander and Rinette's relationship in the novel
is brief, the author manages to recreate the beauty of their
childhood love through Rinette's memory. The search for the
casket of letters reads at a frantic pace and will make the
readers wonder if Rinette will ever be able to free herself
from her abusive husband.
Rinette Leslie of Granmuir has the ancient gift of divining
the future in flowers, but her gift cannot prepare her for
the turmoil that comes when the dying queen regent entrusts
her with a casket full of Scotland's darkest secrets. On
the very day she means to deliver it to newly crowned Mary,
Queen of Scots, Rinette's husband is brutally assassinated.
Devastated, Rinette demands justice before she will
surrender the casket, but she is surrounded by ruthless men
who will do anything to possess it. In the end, the flowers
are all she can trust-and only the flowers will lead her
safely home to Granmuir.
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