The Scent of Power -Power struggles behind the walls of a 16th century Harem

Parallel with the reign of Queen Elizabeth I is the story the reign of a woman more beguiling, more treacherous and even more ambitious. Safiye Sultan, favourite of Murad III will stop at nothing to ensure she is the mother of the next Sultan in her quest for ultimate power behind the Ottoman throne.

Venetian-born Sofia Baffo was captured and sold to the royal harem in Constantinople. But Sofia, the very embodiment of “Machiavellian,” captures her capturers. With her perfumed body and bewitching eyes, she rules the men who own her, using her slavery to acquire power on a global scale. In spite of the lush, sensual themes, this is no Mills and Boon fictionalisation – it is based on true events and real characters. Sofia Baffo controlled the Empire from within the harem walls, her web of intrigue reaching far beyond Constantinople to Europe, her touch felt in wars, sabotage and European politics. A thinking person’s drama, playing on the West’s fascination for life in a Turkish harem.