Burning Ambition — Margaret Thomson Davis

An epic tale of lust and ambition, murder, treachery and revenge at the court of Mary, Queen of Scots. Marie Hepburn, illegitimate daughter of the Bishop of Moray, is only seventeen when she is promised in marriage to the repulsive, middle-aged Duke of Glasgow. But this betrothal proves to be no more than the beginning of Marie's troubles, as she becomes enmeshed in a web of deceit and treachery spun by a suave, handsome and utterly ruthless English agent. His knowledge of the dark secrets of Marie's past casts a shadow over her life, until she meets and falls in love with a young Scottish nobleman. But at the Court of Mary, Queen of Scots, where betrayal and violence are commonplace, Marie soon discovers that love and lust are deadly rivals...