Cromwell’s Blessing

The price for a country. The price for a King. The price for a marriage. The dramatic story of Tom Neave continues…

The second book in the Tom Neave Trilogy, ‘Cromwell’s Blessing’ sees Tom still determined to fight for his principles – democracy, freedom and honour – despite the growing threat to his young family, as England finds itself in the throes of bloody civil war.

The year is now 1647. The King has surrendered to Parliament. Lord Stonehouse, to show his loyalty to Parliament, has named grandson Tom as his successor. But Lord Stonehouse’s son, Richard, is also Tom’s estranged father and a fervent Royalist. If the King reaches a settlement with Parliament Richard will inherit…

Parliament itself is deeply divided with those demanding a strict Puritan regime pitted against more liberal Independents like Cromwell. King Charles, under house arrest, tries to exploit the divisions between them. When Richard arrives from France with a commission from the Queen to snatch the King from Parliamentary hands, he and Tom are set on a collision course. Caught between his love for his wife Anne and their young son, and his loyalty to the new regime, Tom must struggle to save both his family and the estate.

PETER RANSLEYhas written extensively for television. His BBC adaptation of Sarah Waters'sFingersmithwas nominated for a BAFTA for best series in 2006 and his ITV dramaFalling Angel, starring Emilia Fox and Charles Dance, was screened in 2007. He is a winner of the Royal Television Society's Writer's Award. His first novel in the trilogy,Plague Child, published in 2011.