William Rufus' corrupt and opulent court comes the young Norman Ralph des Aix - Eager to win his knight's fee from the new English king. But although fortune - and King Rufus - seems to smile on him, Ralph rapidly discovers that to be King's favourite is bewildering - and not always pleasant. And many feel that the rundown holding of Chenna's Tun, deep in the heart of the New Forest, is a poor reward for his services. In the remote heart of the great wood, Ralph and his passionate young wife, Sybil of Fallowdene, are relentlessly drawn into the growing conflict between the greedy sophistication of the Norman court and the dark world of the Saxon forest with all its hidden rites. A net of danger closes round Ralph, Sybil and the glittering, lonely figure of King Rufus. And to be truly lord of his own manor, Ralph learns that he must bear the ancient title, King of the Wood, with all its mysterious and barbaric responsibilities...