The Saint Beneath Lisbon

Lisbon is burning. Beneath its ruins, a false saint is bleeding.When the devastating earthquake of 1755 tears Lisbon apart, widowed apothecary Madalena Costa discovers a sealed crypt beneath a ruined convent-and the immortal man imprisoned inside it.For nearly two hundred and fifty years, Sebastião Moura's blood has been harvested by the Church and sold to the faithful as a saint's miracle. It can close mortal wounds, purge infection, and restore failing bodies. But the cure also awakens dangerous appetites, especially in women already condemned for wanting more than obedience.Sebastião is seductive, secretive, and capable of terrible violence. Yet he cannot drink from the living unless consciously invited-a restraint that makes him unlike every man who has ever treated Madalena's care as something they were entitled to possess.When she steals a drop of his blood to save a dying woman, Madalena exposes a conspiracy built upon captive flesh. Now a powerful priest intends to turn Lisbon's suffering into the largest harvest yet.To stop him, Madalena must decide whether to free a hungry immortal, destroy a medicine that could save thousands-or surrender to the forbidden appetite awakening within her.Some miracles demand faith. This one demands blood.