The Ruby in Her Navel

Thurstan, a young Norman, has been in love since boyhood with Lady Alicia, now returned a widow from the Holy Land. At the same time, he is enthralled by the earthy sensuality of the dancer, Nesrin, whose troupe he brings to Court to dance for the King. In a spellbinding tale of passion and deception, Thurstan finds himself caught in a tangle of plots and deceptions that threaten to destroy him. Set in twelfth-century Sicily against the backdrop of the Crusades. Barry Unsworth is the author of many novels, including Pascali's Island, which was shortlisted for the 1980 Booker Prize; Stone Virgin (1985); Sacred Hunger, which was joint winner of the 1992 Booker Prize; Morality Play, which was shortlisted for the 1995 Booker Prize; Losing Nelson (1999) and The Songs of the Kings (2002).