The Sacred Symbol: A Historical Conspiracy Mystery Thriller (Torcal Trilogy Book 2) / Wynne, Paula

The Sacred Symbol is the second book in the Torcal Trilogy and follows the award-winning The Grotto's Secret.

July 1492, Palos de la Frontera, Spain

Disguised as a man, Ana-María de Carbonela is on the run from the queen’s soldiers who tortured and killed her mother. She overhears Columbus' sailors preparing a mutiny, but before she can warn him, and convince him to write a journal detailing his privileges from Queen Isabella, she is captured.

When her Jewish tutor is caught and punished for rescuing her, she has a terrible decision to make: Save him ... but risk the death penalty for dressing as a man.

Meanwhile, in present time, Giovanni Armellini is on a hunt for one of the world’s most precious and priceless artefacts: Columbus’ original Book of Privileges. A codex hidden inside will forever change the rumours about the famous admiral. Giovanni will go to deadly lengths to claim it.

In rural Andalucía Nina Monterossa finds her world is turned upside down after her father dies of a sudden heart attack, their farm manager is killed in a barn fire and her sister held to ransom for Columbus' original Book of Privileges.

Nina locates an expert on works by Columbus and rushes to Genoa to ask for help in finding the mysterious book. But Nina has walked into a trap. Now she must escape and find her sister.

The race is on. From Genoa to a remote island off Scotland, she must find the original Book of Privileges in time to save her sister. In doing so, will she discover the secrets Columbus kept hidden from the world?

* You may want to start with the prequel ELIXA and you can search for the rest of the TORCAL TRILOGY.

Readers with Advanced Reader Copies had this to say about The Sacred Symbol:

"I was hooked from the first chapter of The Sacred Symbol. A page-turner right to the end. Another masterpiece from Paula Wynne!" ~ Richard Butler

"I have just started The Sacred Symbol and I'm enchanted! I didn't want to stop reading." ~ DeeAnn Murphy

"Recommended for fans of Dan Brown, a brilliant read" ~ Sue Brown

"Reminiscent of Dan Brown, the Sacred Symbol combines history, mystery, and thriller to capture you from the first chapter and eagerly keep you turning pages." ~ Jane Geiger

"An excellent book intertwining the past and present. It has been responsible for two sleepless nights as I raced to finish it. On a par with the novels of CJ Sansom and SJ Parris. I look forward to future books." ~ Peter Warr