<p>Her years as a novice hardly prepared the plain and pious Juliana de Charnais to become the wife of Gu&eacute;rin de Lasalle the Lord of Parthenay. A former mercenary with a formidable pedigree Lasalle is a man singularly averse to conventions secular and spiritual. When a messenger arrives from the Holy Land and entices Lasalle back into a life he had abandoned Juliana embarks on a perilous journey only to find herself trapped in intrigues as byzantine as they are deadly between the Lusignans a family rumored to be descended from the half-serpent Lady M&eacute;lusine and their rivals the Ibel&iacute;ns. On Cyprus the island of Aphrodite Juliana and Lasalle find that loyalty like love comes in many guises and that duty and honor require of them a terrible sacrifice. Set in 13th-century France and Cyprus <em>The Serpent&#39;s Crown</em> continues the story that began in <em>The Sixth Surrender</em>.</p>