The Plot Against Pepys

It is 1679 and England is awash with suspicion. Everywhere - or so it is feared - Catholic agents are plotting to overthrow the king. Now Samuel Pepys, Secretary of the Admiralty, finds himself in a position few people then or now would have expected - charged with treason. Imprisoned in the Tower of London and abandoned by the embattled king, Pepys sets to work investigating his mysterious accuser, Colonel John Scott, and uncovers a life riddled with ambition, forgery, treason and, ultimately, murder. Using rare access to Pepys' own account of the affair, James Long and Ben Long brilliantly evoke a turbulent period in England's history.

James and Ben Long are father and son. Ben brought his academic qualifications as a historian to this project and James brought his experience as an investigative journalist and novelist, learning a lot from his son in the process. On investigation, they discovered a vast quantity of relatively unknown original material which proved to contain much that was remarkable and exciting and extended the project for some years.