Ireland, 1847. As the Great Famine ravages the countryside, Nancy Spencer arrives at Thornbury Hall in County Kerry to take up a position as housekeeper. Beyond the estate gates she has witnessed starvation, desperation and unrest—but inside the grand manor there is a different kind of fear. Armed guards patrol the grounds and the Thornbury family lives behind locked doors, determined to keep the chaos outside… and their secrets within.
Nancy, however, is not who she claims to be.
She has come to Thornbury Hall with a purpose: to discover the truth about Lady Caroline Thornbury, the young wife of the late Sir Louis Thornbury, who has not been seen in public for months. Rumours swirl—whispers of illness, scandal, even murder. Nancy must learn whether Caroline is dead, hidden away, or still alive and in desperate need of rescue.
Two years earlier, Sir Louis believed himself blessed when the beautiful and enigmatic Caroline Chadwick agreed to marry him. But his daughters, Lucy and Grace—closer in age to their new stepmother than to their father—feared the one thing that could destroy their future: a male heir.
Then Sir Louis died in a suspicious accident… shortly after changing his will.
Now, as famine tightens its grip on Ireland, Nancy begins to uncover the truth about what really happened inside Thornbury Hall—and how far a family will go to protect their inheritance.
