Jack Clements bought his villa and its vineyard eight years ago as ruins in the beautiful area known as the Costa Verde Northern Portugal. Now it is a magnificent villa which produces good wine. his nearest neighbour Maria whom he has never met, is to all intents and purposes a recluse and it is only when her quinta mysteriously catches fire and they are thrown together that things start to happen. As they try to adapt to sharing life at Jack’s villa, the good times of the grape harvest and feast and a typical Portuguese wedding are over shadowed by sinister events. They have no idea that they are being watched and this is only the start of events that are spiralling out of control. Things begin to fall in place when one of Maria’s students decides to look into Maria’s family history after seeing the words carved in stone above the door to the old mansion. the information she uncovers links Maria to Queen Maria the first of Portugal and her father confessor as well as Napoleon. But a chance reading of an article in the Telegraph on line, leads Jack to think that the things that are happening at Maria’s quinta may not be accidental. It will lead to danger and death but Jack's inquisitive mind unfolds even more of what her quinta has to offer.