Abbot Michael alone knows the secret of 15-year-old Leo's parentage, a secret he has faithfully kept for 13 years. Then unexpectedly, after news that the heir to the house of Wardlock has been killed in the Crusades, he sets in motion events in which Leo will need every scrap of wisdom and endurance gained in his sojourn at the abbey. For it is revealed that Leo is not only the heir to Wardlock, but also to its fierce rival - the house of Tremoine!

Set in the deeply pious and violently turbulent 12th century England, this authentic and stirrling tale of suffering and courange shows a boy who in seeking to claim his heritage, must also find out for himself how to live out the truth of love and forgiveness he has been taught.