Debut historical fiction series vividly recreating the rise of the Christian kings of Nothumbria, EnglandIn 604 AD, Edwin, the deposed king of Northumbria, seeks refuge at the court of King Raedwald of East Anglia. But Raedwald is urged to kill his guest by Aethelfrith, Edwin’s usurper. As Edwin walks by the shore, alone and at bay, he is confronted by a mysterious fi gure—the missionary Paulinus— who prophesies that he will become High King of Britain. It is a turning point.Th rough battles and astute political alliances Edwin rises to power, in the process marrying the Kentish princess Aethelburh. As part of the marriage contract the princess is allowed to retain her Christian faith. But, in these times, to be a king is not a recipe for a long life.Th is turbulent and tormented period in British history sees the conversion of the Anglo-Saxon settlers who have forced their way on to British shores over previous centuries, arriving fi rst to pillage, then to farm and trade—and to come to terms with the faith of the Celtic tribes they have driven out.Th e dramatic story of Northumbria’s Christian kings helped give birth to England as a nation, English as a language, and the adoption of Christianity as the faith of the English.