Was Shakespeare a fraud? Who really wrote about cloak-and-dagger political intrigue, illicit romances in the Royal Court, and the schemes of greedy nobles hungry for the power of the throne? Set against the backdrop of the succession of Queen Elizabeth I, and the Essex Rebellion against her, intrigue and suspense advance the theory that it was really Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, who penned Shakespeare's plays.

Danger-courting excursionist James Delaney returns to London in 1814 in order to attend his father's funeral. He inherits his notorious father's shipping empire, as well as all of the enemies and debts his father's dubious dealings had picked up along with it.