Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, 1440:

Finally home after five years away, warrior-nobleman Sándor Szilágyi is met by a dying father, a resentful younger brother, his child-bride all grown up and the family estate raided by the Ottomans. As he struggles to adjust to life as a landlord, Sándor's authority is challenged by two strong-minded and fearless women: Margit, his faithful and righteous wife, determined to keep him on the straight and narrow; and Anna, his sister-in-law, a scheming temptress bent on ruining him in order to take his land.

After committing a mortal sin and desperate to win back the woman he loves, Sándor seeks absolution by accepting his overlord's summons to fight the Ottomans. But his obsession with war will lead him down a perilous path.

Loyalties are tested, danger lurks around every corner, and Sándor's struggle to balance his duty to protect his land and family from his relatives' greedy hands, as well as his duty to defend his country on the battlefield, will come at a terrible cost.

*****

"In a world of chivalry and honour, Ms Dunne brings to life the harsh and raw reality of medieval 15th-century Hungary. So often, historical novels are fixed in the settings of England and France, but this one shifts the story to a place and time not familiar to most historical readers, thus giving a fresh look at the time period while connecting readers to the familiar landscape of war, love, lust, betrayal, loss, and pain." - The Historical Fiction Company Review