Lion Let Loose

James I of Scotland spends much of his youth a captive in England, but confinement gives the intelligent prince an education unusual for a medieval king. He becomes a poet, musician, athlete and formidable observer of government, while his love for Joan Beaufort offers the possibility of companionship as well as a dynastic marriage. When James finally returns to Scotland in 1424, he brings both a bride and a determination to recover the authority that powerful nobles have exercised during his absence.

The king’s energy and gifts inspire admiration, but his reforms, taxation and ruthless treatment of rival magnates also multiply his enemies. James attempts to impose law upon a violent realm and to make monarchy effective, even as resentment gathers within his own extended family. Tranter sets the celebrated romance of James and Joan beside the devotion of Catherine Douglas and the conspiracy that closes around the court at Perth, transforming the life of Scotland’s poet-king into a tragedy of achievement, betrayal and murder.