Hannah and Isaac Levi, Venetians in exile, have set up a new life for themselves in Constantinople. Isaac runs a newly established business in the growing silk trade, while Hannah, the best midwife in all of Constantinople, tends to the harem of Sultan Murat III.

But one night, when Hannah is unexpectedly summoned to the palace, she's confronted with Zofia, a poor Jewish peasant girl who has been abducted and sold into the sultan's harem --- favored as his next conquest to produce an heir. Will Hannah risk her life and livelihood to protect Zofia and return her safely home, or will she prioritize her high esteem in the eye of the sultan?