Rupert of Hentzau

Five years have passed since Rudolf Rassendyll sacrificed the woman he loved to honor and duty. Now the King of Ruritania, once grateful for Rassendyll's aid against the usurper, has become a jealous shadow of himself, tormenting Queen Flavia with suspicions she cannot escape. Each year she has sent Rudolf a single red rose. Each year it has been a secret wound. This year, she decides, must be the last. But before her letter of farewell can reach him, it falls into the hands of Count Rupert of Hentzau the man they thought they'd banished forever. With the rose and the letter, Rupert possesses the instruments to destroy the King, destabilize the throne, and return to Ruritania in triumph. Rudolf Rassendyll, his loyal friend Sapt, and the faithful Fritz must race against time to prevent a scandal that would shatter a kingdom and condemn the woman they all love. The adventure that made Anthony Hope famous continues in this darker, tenser sequel that trades the romantic idealism of Zenda for something more dangerous: the knowledge that love and power rarely coexist peacefully.