<b>An incomparable beauty. A promise to a king. A portrait that can never be completed.</b><br/><br/><b>Longlisted for the 2024 ARA Historical Novel Prize</b><br/><br/>When Emilia Lennox loses everything after her husband's lands and title are confiscated, her beauty is her best bargaining chip with the only man who can restore their fortunes: King Charles II himself.<br/><br/>But the king's favour comes at a price. He will pardon Emilia's husband only if she agrees to be his mistress. Torn, Emilia comes up with a condition of her own: she will consent, but not until her portrait hangs among the famed Windsor Beauties, a series commissioned by the Duchess of York to showcase the fairest women in the royal retinue.<br/><br/>For Henry Greenhill, ambitious assistant to the court painter, the opportunity to paint Emilia's portrait is a chance to step out of his master's shadow. But his sitter proves as evasive as she is beautiful, and with barely a sketch to show for his efforts, Henry's career is on the line.<br/><br/><br/>As the king's patience wears thin, it's clear that more than creative talent will be needed to capture this incomparable beauty on canvas ...