Queens' Play by Dorothy Dunnett — book slip

The young Mary Queen of Scots is now part of the court of Henri II of France. Mary of Guise, the Queen Mother, persuades Francis Crawford to go to France to gather intelligence about France's negotiations with England, Scotland's enemy.

He reluctantly complies, becoming a central part of the court's lavish entertainments. As a traitor plots the death of the young Queen, Crawford is forced into dangerous stratagems to outwit Scotland's enemies.

Second in the complete six-book series, The Lymond Chronicles.