"Lloyd once again infuses his world with the sights, sounds, and smells of the late 17th century...for what’s bound to be one of the best historical novels of the year." — CrimeReads In a thrilling sequel to The Bloodless Boy —a New York Times Best New Historical Novel of 2021 — combining the color and adventure of Alexandre Dumas and the thrills of Frederick Forsyth — early scientists Harry Hunt and Robert Hooke of the Royal Society stumble on a plot to kill the Queen of England . . .London, 1679 — A year has passed since the sensational attempt to murder King Charles II, but London is still a viper’s nest of rumored Catholic conspiracies, and of plots against them in turn. When Harry Hunt — estranged from his mentor Robert Hooke — is summoned to the remote and windswept marshes of Norfolk, he is at first relieved to get away from the place.But in Norfolk, he finds that...

In late 17th Century London rich young women are being kidnapped, then murdered. Harry Hunt, formerly of the Royal Society but now a rich gentleman, is falsely accused. To clear his name, he must rely on his abandoned scientific expertise and battle the full force of the British aristocracy.1681. London cooks in summer heat. Bonfires are lit in protest against the King’s brother, James, heir to the throne but openly Catholic. Rumours abound of a ‘Black Box’, said to conceal proof the King’s illegitimate son is really the rightful heir.When a wealthy merchant’s daughter is kidnapped and murdered—even though a ransom was paid—the King orders Harry Hunt of the Royal Society to help investigate.A second woman goes missing: Elizabeth Thynne, England’s richest heiress. Her husband has a ransom letter from the same kidnappers.Pressured by powerful men to find the killers and rescue Elizabeth, Harry uncovers a...

London, 1678. The blood-drained body of a young boy is discovered in the snow on the bank of the Fleet River. Sir Edmund Bury Godfrey, Justice of the Peace, sets out to investigate this sinister killing with the help of Robert Hooke, Curator of Experiments at the Royal Society, and his assistant Harry Hunt. On Sir Edmund’s orders Hooke and Harry preserve the body as evidence at Gresham College.
 When a solicitor delivers a coded letter to Hooke, he recognises the code as being one used during the Civil War thirty years before, and discovers that Sir Edmund had in fact used it at that time to assist King Charles II’s escape to France. Hooke becomes suspicious of Sir Edmund and forbids Harry from continuing the investigation. But Harry ignores Hooke’s warnings.
 Meanwhile, we’re introduced to the Earl of Shaftesbury, his secretary John Locke, and Lefèvre, an assassin.  They are plotting against the King and intend to exploit the anti-Catholic feeling in London to cast blame for the plot on innocent Catholics. Shaftesbury’s employees give false evidence to Sir Edmund about the dead boy, and as they intended, rumours start to spread of a Catholic plot and the finding of a ‘devil-boy’ drained of his blood.
 When another young boy is found dead, Hooke, Harry and Sir Edmund are summoned by the King to examine the body.  But before they have time to find the serial killer, Sir Edmund is discovered dead, wedged in the waterwheels under London Bridge. The King commands that the Justice’s murder be kept secret to avoid more anti-Catholic hysteria.
 At the autopsy, which is carried out by Robert Hooke with Harry assisting, a piece of paper is found in Sir Edmund’s stomach.  On it is written the keyword for the Civil War secret code, CORPUS. Harry makes the connection between the keyword and the writings of Thomas Whitcombe, a pioneering scientist who carries out experiments in blood transfusion.
 As word spreads of Harry’s investigation into the mysterious deaths, he finds his life in grave danger, not knowing any longer who to trust when he finally realises the horrible significance of Whitcombe’s research and the terrible consequences of experiments gone wrong in the name of Science.