This is the story of a mysterious woman, an incredible beauty, capable of both magic and bewitchment, who strives to become the master of her own destiny in a purely male world. It is also the story of two cities at the height of their glory—the capital of the Mughal Empire, whose ruler, Akbar, agonizes over faith, passion, and betrayal, and 16th-century Florence, where Niccolò Machiavelli learns firsthand the cruelty of power.