A haunting story of power and loss in Henry VIII's England. On the night that the soldiers burn the abbey, beautiful young Alys flees to the wretched hovel of the wise woman Morach. As a child, Alys eagerly learned Morach's ways of country healing, but now she despises the grinding poverty and those black arts. A summons to treat the ailing Lord Hugh provides the means for her escape. Seduced by the lavish world of the court - a maelstrom of excitement, temptation and danger - Alys comes face to face with the handsome young Lord Hugo.