Set in the time of Elizabeth 1st,this is a beautifully written piece of historical fiction .Sophia de Wolfe was previously a spy working for Chief Spymaster Frances Walsingham. A body of a young girl is found with a mysterious note attached to her body using the Cypher Sophia herself used to used. Sophia is called back from retirement to help find the young girls killer .A rich suspenseful plot with lots of twists and turns and a satisfying ending .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC

As expected this book is an absolute delight and a real page turner! I love that this new series has a female lead character but there are still the constraints that make life difficult for women particularly in Tudor England. S J Parris really knows how to write historical fiction and this book has it all with murder, mystery and so much intrigue.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

The year is 1598 and Queen Elizabeth is still without a successor, and things in England couldn’t be more precarious.
So when a young potential heiress is murdered, Robert Cecil calls on Sophia de Wolfe, a former agent of his. He asks her to investigate and find out what’s happened.
Whilst investigating the case she comes across a cryptic letter on the body of the dead girl. A letter that links to her former life as a spy and contains a secret that Sophia wants to remain a secret. One that goes right into the heart of the Elizabethan court.
With very powerful people looking on, Sophia has to find answers quickly if she is to keep her secret and solve the murder, but that will the ultimate test with the whole court watching.
S.J. Parris is a fine writer of Elizabethan fiction, but this novel is something very special indeed.
A totally unique and endearing main character the readers will love, and the novel itself is a convincing and plausible crime story set in the most fractious and paranoid period of Elizabeth’s reign.
This is one of the best books I’ve this year so far and one I most definitely recommend.

I hadn’t read any of S.J. Parris’ works before, despite being a big fan of historical fiction, but that didn’t matter as this book marks the start of a new series. Traitor’s Legacy is based around a former spy, Sophia de Wolfe, who is called in to investigate the murder of a young heiress to whom she has been linked by a cryptic note left on the body.

The case itself is very well plotted but the novel is really brought to life by a wonderful depiction of Elizabethan London and a fantastic main character. It can be hard to write female characters in history who can be strong and resourceful and still feel part of their historical period, but Parris manages it perfectly. Sophia’s previous life is referenced, although there is clearly far more to uncover, and she’s very capable but still manages to feel a believable part of her class and sex at the time. I was hooked on the story from the start and am looking forward to the next one already (and yes, I have also started the author’s Giordano Bruno series in the meantime).

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

SJ Parris has set such a high standard with her previous books - I'm a huge fan of the Giordano Bruno series - but I'm pleased to say the Traitors Legacy absolutely lives up to expectations

Packed full of political intrigue, excellent characters and vivid depictions of Elizabethan England I was definitely entertained.

In this first book in a new series, Parris gives Sophia de Wolfe, a character from the Bruno series, space to shine as the main character and shine she does. Feisty, clever and connected she's up against some very murky characters and you'll be on her side the whole way.

I love seing a real historical figures blended with the fictional and this is beautifully done here with Shakespeare.

An excellent start to a new series and I'm eagerly awaiting the next instalment

While not being new to historical dramas I am however new to S. J. Parris’ work; I have since added ‘Heresy’ to my TBR!
Set in the Winter of 1598, Sophia de Wolfe is roped in to investigate the murder of a thirteen year old girl after evidence left at the scene ties to Sophia herself. I was hooked in the beginning but the slowness lost me a little bit in the middle, I found myself easily distracted while reading but from around 70% I was hooked again!
I’’ll definitely be sticking around for the series!

What a splendid start to a new series. Whereas the smells of London were not apparent, all other aspects were, many of which are as true today as they were in 1598. The rich and powerful often believe themselves above the law and rely on their "betters" to keep them there.

The cast of players are "real" as are the situations they find themselves in and you may find that, like myself, you want to reach into the book and "deal with them"!!

I shall now have to be patient and wait for volume 2: something very nice to look forward to.

I love this author, and I have read and listened to the Bruno Giordano series. In this book, she has given us a female heroine, still in the same era but a decade after the death of Walsingham, who had a list of spies that he called upon to help keep Queen Elizabeth 1st safe, but has since disbanded.
Sophia de Wolfe, on whose second marriage she did rather well and her husband knew all her secrets but since his death women of that era were mainly looked upon to be the loyal wife and to produce offspring hopefully male but being her age she did not have any children but she did inherited a stepson whose father gave him a house when he passed but everything else went to Sophia which Justin de Wolfe will plot against her with anything he can think of, to get rid of her, and claim the inheritance he thinks should be his.
Sophia is not one for sitting on her backside sewing, she has this get up and go and has taken up fencing, which I'm sure would be frowned upon by other women, and she likes to help the down trodden and when a murder has occurred and one of the suspects who is an entertainer/actor which she gives money to the playhouse company is jailed for murder she intervenes, and puts herself in danger.
Parris has woven a good plot, lots of twists and turns. I do hope there will be more of this series as a network of spies could be in the offering, will Sophia de Wolfe be tempted back?
I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK for an ARC copy to read, but the thoughts and views are my own.

I’ve read a few of the Giordano Bruno series, which I absolutely adore, so I already knew Sophia, and I’m over the moon that she has her own series now. I will make it clear though that this is completely separate, and is standalone, but I do think I gained a lot by having known Sophia from the GB series (which everyone should read!!)

As is to be expected, this is just absolutely brilliant. I just get so immersed in the storyline, the characters, it all just comes to life so much for me with this author.

Brilliant! I can’t wait for more!

My thanks to Netgalley and Team Harper Fiction for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Traitor’s Legacy by S J Parris
This is the first novel in S J Parris’s new series her main character is Sophia de Wolfe a young widow with a past linked to Elizabeth’s spymaster Robert Cecil. The novel is set in 1598 an aged Queen Elizabeth has named no heir and England teeters on the edge of a knife. In this maelstrom a young heiress is discovered murdered her body dumped in the ruins of a theatre.
Robert Cecil calls upon Sophia to investigate placing her life as a young widow in danger but she has another, well-hidden, reason for discovering the perpetrator of this terrible crime. On the girls body was a note which appears to refer to Sophia’s past life as a spy and discovering who wrote the note could be the key to solving the mystery.
Her investigations lead her to the door of Queen Elizabeth’s favourite, The Earl of Essex, and deeper into danger. This is a gripping story and one which evokes the period in glorious detail. Sophia is a fascinating character and I look forward to other outings with her in future novels. I will be recommending it at my various book groups and look forward to listening to the author at the Essex Book Festival. Many thanks to Harper Collins UK, Net Galley and the author for the opportunity to read the book in return for an honest review.

S J Parris does not disappoint with this novel about Sophia de Wolfe a former agent of William Cecil She artfully weaves a story about spies and spy masters all set with a backdrop of Elizabethan London. A very entertaining book. Much to recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the advance copy of this book.

The first book in a new series, with some familiar characters returning from the much missed Bruno novels. There was a fair amount of repetition to start with in a new backstory, but this should settle as new persons , both main and secondary, grow into their roles.
Set towards the latter years of Queen Elizabeth the First, she is still declining to name her successor, and her advisors are growing nervous as there are still threats from Spain and Ireland. Sir Francis Walsingham and Lord Burghley are both dead, and their famous network of spies employed to keep England safe has been fractured.
Sophia de Wolfe, used to be one such spy, working in Catholic households as an informer. She misses the excitement and the appreciation of her many talents and her skilled use of ciphers and codes. When a young woman of noble birth is found dead in the ruins of The Theatre, lately owned by Richard Burbage, and on her body is a message written in the code last used by Sophia, danger once again comes close to her and risks revealing hidden details of her secret son.
Anthony Munday, a close friend and former spy, are both charged to work together to find both the murderer and the motive, and many court figures come under suspicion, the ties that bind families are important.
Sophia is a real kick ass agent, and a wonderfully strong female lead.
We are also introduced to the Stratford Gentleman, one William Shakespeare, and the fascinating world of Elizabethan theatre. There are also vivid description of the harsh, dirty and dangerous world far away from the rarified life at court. There are no punches pulled about the sad and lonely life of entitled ladies, arranged marriages, and no rights over property and children. A good introduction to the skills of herbalists and cures for “ women’s problems”. Enlightening
A fast paced and enjoyable novel, with likeable and dependable characters, that I hope will return in the second offering.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers HarperCollinsUK, for my advanced read, freely given in return for my honest review. A four star read.
I will leave further reviews to Goodreads and Amazon UK upon publication.

What an absolute page turner! I love historical fiction and the Tudor period is one of my favourite times. SJ Parris has given Sophia de Wolfe, a character who features in her Bruno series, a leading role of her own in this book, which is set to be the beginning of a new series. When a note in a secret cipher known by the powers that be to have been used solely by Sophia is found pinned to the corpse of a young girl, Sophia finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. Steeped in the politics of the time, the powerful family forces that held sway at court over Queen Elizabeth I, the superbly crafted world of the streets of Tudor London, this is a story that had me gasping in shock, seeking clues, throwing out red herrings and left me agog at the denouement! A sheer triumph in my eyes! I can’t wait for the next in this series.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for a review.

The writing was engaging with a good balance of description and narration. It really felt like we had stepped back in time. There were plenty of things going on to keep your attention. I was surprised by how everything came together in the end.

The book opened with a character list which was helpful as there were quite a few different characters to keep track of. There was then a prologue to set the scene followed by the rest of the chapters.

The chapters were long, and some of them had a date as a title which perfectly illustrated the passage of time. As the chapters were long, you got a big chunk of the story before moving on. There were lots of characters and little details to keep you on your toes, but it was written in a clear way that kept you moving forward.

There was a good pace to the book, with twists and turns to slow you down (in a good way!). There was a good amount of description to ground and enhance the story. The chapters flowed well together resulting in a nice read.

The characters were great. There were lots of different personalities that you weren't sure were true to the character. This added tension to the story. Every time you thought that you had the murderer and the story wrapped up something didn't quite match up. It kept me guessing until the end.

Lastly the settings. I loved being in Elizabethan London. The time period provided an excellent background for untrustworthy characters and suspense in the story. The general way that society was during that time again helped the story to be what it was.

Overall an excellent story, full of twists and turns, set in a volatile time in history.

The first in a new series set in the late 16th century introduces Sophia de Wolfe - a former agent - called on by the Queen's Spymaster to investigate the death of a 13 year old girl. Investigating senior and powerful men of London Sophia steps on many feet and risks her own life. While following this mystery we learn a great deal about Sophia's past. In with the intrigue are interesting descriptions of London and the loyalty of staff and how some risk their lives and positions telling the truth rather than let their employers get away with murder.
Many thanks to Netgalley/S.J. Pararis/HarperCollins UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is a slow burn historical murder mystery. Set in 1598, Sophia de Wolfe is asked to investigate the death of a teenage girl and soon finds she has a personal interest in the case.

This is a richly detailed book; the characters and the settings are all described in immense detail. Perhaps due to this I did find the action a little slow at times, particularly in the first half of the book, but the second half was a much faster read.

This was a different read for me but I really liked the sound of the blurb. I feel like this story dragged on and on where nothing really happened. I’ve enjoyed the writing and the style of it, but I just feel the story itself was very slow paced for me. I liked Sophie as a character, and I was glad when she discovered who murdered Agnes - and that it was an accident after all. I was sad poor Badger was murdered, I liked his character too. It seems like Sophie and Tobie might end up with a story of their own?!

Another historical masterpiece from S. J. Parris set in late-Elizabethan England. Sophia de Wolfe is a great heroine and the story is full of suspense as she investigates the murder of a girl which is somehow connected to her secret past. Highly recommended story!

S J Parris has produced another excellent mystery set in the late days of Elizabeth Tudor’s reign when uncertainty over the future of the throne and fear of Catholic plots was rife.
This time, the main protagonist is Sophia de Wolfe, a widow who obviously has a very unusual past and one that she would rather not be common knowledge. The discovery of a young girl’s body seems to be linked to her past and Robert Cecil, the queen’s spymaster, demands that she investigate who carried out the murder.
I loved the opening of this book with the brazen theft of a theatre building by Richard Burbage and his players who intend to rebuild it elsewhere in London. The theatre link is strong throughout the book with William Shakespeare making a couple of appearances and I really enjoyed the way he got inspiration from events in the novel.
The plot was complex but never too complicated to keep track of and the author did a fantastic job of providing twists and turns so that it was never obvious what was going to happen next. The historical background was detailed and the combination of real characters such as The Earl of Essex and Robert Cecil with the fictional ones worked well. As always with S J Parris, the setting was brilliantly done. It was very easy to visualise London in those turbulent days towards the end of the sixteenth century. I always enjoy historical novels that add to my knowledge of the period and this story was a good example of that.
Sophia was a likeable protagonist who was determined to solve this murder and protect her secrets. She is a capable woman, in fact we first meet her as she is having a lesson in sword fighting and is not afraid to put herself in danger. It was nice to have a woman in this type of role and the constraints put on her because she was a woman and not a member of the aristocracy were well conveyed. The supporting cast were well written too especially Sophia’s fellow spy and her housekeeper.
This is a new series although Sophia has featured in at least one earlier book in the author’s previous series. At first it feels as though there must have been a previous book as there are a lot of references to Sophia’s past. However, we gradually find out some of what her past life involved and what the secrets are that she guards so carefully. One of the things I enjoyed was the tension created by the fact that as the plot unfolded, neither Sophia nor the reader knew who she could trust.
This was a great start to the series and I look forward to reading more of Sophia’s adventures. Thank you as always to Net Galley and the publishers, Harper Collins UK for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It's December 1598, Queen Elizabeth I is still on the throne, but ageing, with no heir.

Sophia De Wolfe is a widow and former spy. When she retired her former spy-master, Walsingham, brokered a marriage for her with the wealthy merchant Humphrey de Wolfe and they were very happy until his death. When she was nineteen Sophia fell in love with a Jesuit priest and bore a child out of wedlock who was subsequently adopted, she has used her connections to discover the identity of the child, who is now a young man of fifteen and has kept an eye on him ever since. Her son, Tobie, who has no idea she is his birth mother, is an actor in a theatre company and she supports the company with her patronage.

One night, a young woman's body is found in a shallow grave. She is no pauper, instead she is an incredibly wealthy young woman, Agnes, ward to Sir Thomas North, who was intended to be betrothed to Thomas's son Edmund. Pinned to the girl's body is a note in a code created especially for Sophia when she was a spy. She hasn't thought of the code for a decade - who could have got hold of it and why would they use it to write a note and pin it to a body? Has someone discovered Sophia's past? Robert Cecil, the queen's current spymaster instructs Sophia to investigate.

Then disaster strikes. Sir Thomas has found love letters from Tobie to Agnes and has decided that Tobie killed her when she refused to elope with him. Now Sophia will do anything to rescue her son from prison. But as she investigates things become murky, was her death connected to a secret Catholic conspiracy? Why did the Countess of Essex take such an interest in Agnes? Is her murder related to the uprisings in Ireland? Was her murder a direct hit to Sophia?

I requested this book thinking the author was C.J. Sansom or Andrew Taylor (many of whose books I have read and enjoyed) and honestly I was none the wiser at the end that it wasn't one of these authors - I will definitely revisit her Giordano Bruno series - I think I bought the first one and couldn't get into it.

Overall, a fascinating, well-plotted historical detective series and I will definitely request the second book in the series.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.