By Force of Circumstance

Book 3 in The Chosen Man Trilogy

“For sale: the English Crown Jewels”

1643: Ludo da Portovenere, now a settled merchant, is thrust back into his former profiteering ways when the Queen of England commissions him to sell priceless gems to raise money for the Royalist cause during the Civil War.

Ludo sees how to make a very significant profit – mostly for himself. But this plan is set awry when Alina, Baroness Metherall, becomes involved. Meanwhile, Marcos Alonso Almendro, now a successful merchant in Plymouth is charged with acquiring the jewels to prevent them being sold at all.

What none of them know is that the evil-minded Vatican agent Rogelio, who is pursuing a personal vendetta against Ludo, has been commissioned to acquire the very same gems by the Vatican. Events move into perilous territory as it comes time for old scores to be settled, one way or the other.

Caught up in conflicts not their own, Ludo, Alina and Marcos have to decide where their loyalties lie, where they want to be, and ultimately, with whom.

Readers’ Favorite 5* and a Discovered Diamond award

Editorial Reviews: Richly detailed with a riveting story, ‘By Force of Circumstance’ is a glittering tale of stolen jewels, broken hearts, and an irresistible rogue. Once you enter Ludo da Portovenere’s world, you never want to leave. Elizabeth St John, best-selling author of ‘The Lydiard Chronicles’