Their love is forbidden, but when murder stalks St Merryn, no secrets or lives are safe.A small village with many secrets... Charity calls St Merryn home but it is where her mother was murdered, the killer never caught. Protected by her family, she lives a sheltered life, but the killer is closer than she knows.Jethro's father is a violent drunk, accused and tried for the murder of Charity's mother, he was found not guilty and set free. The two families have been at war ever since. Violence is all Jethro has ever known, he doesn't know how to love, he doesn't believe he deserves it.A forbidden love... When Charity and Jethro meet by chance they develop an instant attraction neither expected, but their love is forbidden. Charity is torn between loyalty to her family and her growing desire for a man they hate.A soldier seeking revenge... But someone from the past returns to St Merryn. Henry is a battle-scarred soldier with a ruthless thirst to punish former friends who've ruined his life. In a cruel twist, Jethro is accused of murder and Charity must risk everything to save him from the hangman's noose. In a desperate race against time she tries to find Henry, the real killer. He, however, has other ideas.Set in 1820 Cornwall against the backdrop of simple beliefs, witchcraft, and the hangman's noose is a tale of forbidden love, revenge and forgiveness.