A man lies under the tawny earth, hands still clutching the knife that killed him. Thorfinn Sigurdarson, Earl of all Orkney and Caithness, has made a mistake, and he won’t let himself forget it. Now, rumours have started in the Norse lands that he might be getting a second chance - but should he take it, when it means that dead men are walking? 

Meanwhile, Gillan McArdle’s academic career is ending because of one stupid lapse of judgement. Offered a short-term contract, he lands on the Hebridean island of Harris to investigate obscure animal bones. Quickly dismissing the unicorn skull as a thinly disguised fake, he can’t deny there’s something unusual about these bones. Baited by rumors of a majestic tusked horse roaming the uplands, Gill begins to suspect someone is manipulating him. As he gradually unravels the mystery of the skull, he grasps a disturbing conclusion: If this creature does exist, the evidence suggests it’s a killer.

Amid a revolution, archaeologist Christopher Jordan and ancient manuscript expert Kathryn Ferguson travel to Syria in search of the original scroll of Marks' Gospel. Paralleling their quest is the story of the evangelist's escape with the scroll from the Roman siege of Jerusalem in 70 C.E., his struggles to complete the manuscript, and his journeys and efforts with the daughter of Peter the Apostle to protect and save it for the ages. For both couples, time is running out and enemies are closing in.

It is the dawn of the Renaissance, a time when new ideas are just beginning to emerge. Alfred - the eponymous second son - comes of age in the enlightened court of his grandfather. Alfred is convinced that his life will be unremarkable, spent in diligent but mundane service to king and kingdom. His grandfather, however, foresees for him a special destiny. It is also a time when peace and stability are tenuous, and threats can arise from unexpected quarters.  

Thomas Austin was once a prominent NYPD detective, known for locking up a psychopathic serial killer dubbed "The Holiday Baby Butcher". Now retired in a small beach town in the Pacific Northwest, Austin runs a little café, trying to overcome the loss of his wife, a DA who was gunned down only one year ago.