Every Valley is the cinematic and moving true story that lies behind the creation of one of the greatest pieces of music ever written, Handel's Messiah. 'A mesmerizing journey [through] one of the most fascinating and creative moments in human history' AMANDA FOREMAN 'Unforgettable. A delicious history of music, power, love, genius, royalty and adventure' SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE London, 1741. An actress mired in scandal plans her escape from an abusive husband. A penniless sea captain sets out to rescue the city's abandoned infants. An African Muslim and former captive in the colonies becomes a celebrity. A grieving political dissident seeks release from his torment. And a great composer to kings - George Frideric Handel - now ill and straining to keep an audience's attention, faces a decision that will secure his place in history. Evoking a pivotal moment at the birth of modernity, a time of fear, conspiracy and uprising, and featuring some of the most unusual and brilliant personalities of the eighteenth century, Every Valley is a resonant story of hope in the darkness and the entangled lives that shaped a masterpiece. 'A book of power and glory, brimming with emotion and dazzling in its reach' STACY SCHIFF