Mercenary veteran Sir John Hawker escapes the bloody battlefield of Bosworth, charged by the late King Richard III, to return a jewel, previously held in possession of the Yorkists' kings, to the Doge of Venice. The pathway unfortunately is never easy. And along the way, the motley group are beset by drama and betrayal. Their quest is hardly the secret they think it is, as enemies and allies alike want the jewel for themselves and their own purposes.

This first is the series gets off to a great start, as the main characters establish themselves across the pages. Bale provides plenty of historical detail that conveys the reader along on the journey. I am looking forward to the next in this series.

I absolutely loved this book from start to finish! A very well written that takes place in a historical setting, with lots of plot twists. Beautiful and developed characters.

My thanks to the Author publisher's and NetGalley for providing me with a Kindle version of this book to read and honestly review.
Well written and researched this is an atmospheric descriptive engaging story, a good mix of mystery and action some quite gruesome. The author gives the reader a real feel for time and place with excellent characterisation throughout.
Recommended.

Tudor age, pan European thriller!

1485 Richard Plantagenet and Henry Tudor’s armies are moving. Richard comands Sir John Hawker to return a jewel, a huge roughly set ruby, gifted by its previous owner the Doge of Venice, to Richard. Called the Tear of Byzantium, rumour has it the the Tear must be returned if the current owner tired of possessing it.
Hawker has another obligation, to protect Richard’s illegitimate son. Hawker is a bear of a man, quick witted and discerning, although he’s much troubled in Venice. He’s a man off integrity who seeks to protect and adhere to his word. With a small band of stalwart companions and a doubtful Frenchman he travels to Venice, where as expected things don’t go quite to plan. The individual members of the company are an interesting lot, their loyalty mostly given—except when it isn’t.
Meanwhile more than one powerful party is seeking Richard’s hidden son and the Tear-a jewel with its own legend, it’s sordid mystery. Whether a curse or a blessing is to be discovered. When all else fails help comes from a quarter Hawker has his own doubts about.
A solid Tudor era adventure that travels from England to Venice, and beyond with many a twist and turn, and the promise of more to come.
Bale’s Historical Notes are well worth the read giving a rounded view of dynasties, rumours and events at this time.

A Canelo ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

When Lord Stanley’s actions turn the outcome of the Battle of Bosworth on its head, in 1485, veteran knight Sir John Hawker flees England, with a ragtag group of loyal Yorkists, to fulfill a mission entrusted to him by the now deceased King Richard III. This mission― to protect Richard’s bastard son, the last of the Yorkist line if Edward V and Richard of York are indeed dead, and to return a precious jewel, one of the Tears of Byzantium to the Doge in Venice. But their arrival in the city does not herald all that he had expected and Sir John finds intrigue and betrayal on every side. He’s not even sure he trusts the men he is travelling with. And Henry Tudor’s agents want them dead.
This is a fast-paced tale with plenty of vivid battle scenes and street fighting. There’s a smidgen of romance, and a mystery surrounding Sir John’s part in the disappearance of the royal Princes and these tangents add depth. My only complaint is that the action doesn’t really pick up until almost half way through the novel, although the speed at which news travels would rival any social media of today. This has the bones of an exciting new series which will appeal to fans of David Gilman and Bernard Cornwell.

Well written with a compellingly brutal storyline and well developed characters. It was fast paced and twisty, I didn't know what to expect and it kept me guessing.

Surprisingly good. This kept me turning pages, and wondering what was coming next. There were some good surprises along the way, and a good ending. Recommended.

Thanks very much for the free ARC for review!!

I just loved this story so much. But fictional tale weaved into the backdrop of a history I grew up surrounded with was absolutely gripping.

The twists and turns were addicting and seeing the story shift and change felt so fascinating.

I really love Hawker as a character, the layers of his character building was amazing. He felt well-rounded and seeing his approach to different situations and having to make new plans was very well-done.

The dynamics shared between the men-at-arms, personally, gave me a form of found family vibes that I very much enjoyed.

The mythology surrounding the jewel just interested me so that, I honestly had to remind myself it was pure fiction sometimes.

I never wanted to put this down, but whenever I did: I couldn't stop thinking about what would happy next. Having an insight in what characters in particular were doing and their reasons for their journey was never boring to me.

All in all, I really enjoyed this and would wholeheartedly recommend if you're a fan of this genre.