The Young Lion (House of Plantagenet #1) by Blanche d'Alpuget

'She's stolen more than my heart. She may steal everything I've worked for. Or she may be the key to our triumph.'

The first novel in a compelling series about the House of Plantagenet, the mightiest royal dynasty in English history.

Returning from the Crusades with her pious husband, Louis of France, the beautiful French Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, starts a dangerous affair with Geoffrey, Duke of Normandy. Geoffrey's secret intent is to make her his spy in the French court where the struggle for dominance between Normandy, France and England plays out. But what begins in cool calculation becomes a passionate affair. Despite this, Geoffrey remains committed to a covert goal: to see his young warrior son, Henry, seize the English throne.

Saving his father from discovery and execution by the French, Henry falls foul of Eleanor -- and madly in love with her Byzantine maid. Should he become King of England, this dazzling girl will never be acceptable as his consort. These intertwined relationships -- heated, forbidden and perilous -- are the heart of a vivid story of ambition, vengeance and dynastic intrigue.

Genres: Historical Fiction - Medieval - Fantasy - British Literature - Royalty - War - Romance - Australian Author