In the five years since Hannah Levi bid farewell to Venice and the Jewish ghetto, she has forged an enviable life in Constantinople. She has a loving husband, a position of trust and authority as Imperial Midwife in the Sultan's harem, a much loved adopted daughter, Jessica, and a son, Matteo, the orphaned heir of a wealthy noble Venetian family. But one morning everything she has built for herself and her family comes to an abrupt end. Matteo is snatched from her in a bustling marketplace. Hannah knows who has taken him - an old enemy who plans to steal Matteo's fortune. What she doesn't know if how to get him back. Against her husband's wishes, a pregnant Hannah sets sail for Venice to rescue Matteo, aware that in Venice she may be arrested for the murder of Matteo's uncle. Meanwhile, he adversaries await her arrival in the Venetian countryside with a devilishly cunning plan. Hannah's resilience and bravery are tested when she find herself alone, pregnant, and in prison, condemned to be hanged once she has delivered her baby.