Venice in 1576 is a city ravaged by plague. Most have fled but the beautiful and formidable Tullia Buffo, once the most desired courtesan of the age, has returned home. Facing ruin, Tullia must now fight for her life and protect her secrets.
The gondolier Sebastiano, a keeper of secrets, has plied his trade on the canals of Venice his whole life, soaking up gossip and scandal and saving his family from destitution after what happened to his father. After all these years, his lifelong grudge against the famous painter Titian's son is as strong as ever. Now, with Titian dead, his son has returned to Venice to claim his father's paintings and Sebastiano has a plan for revenge.
In the present day, events from centuries earlier suddenly engulf the lives of ordinary people as far distant as London and New York as they are touched by the enduring legacy of Tullia, a lost Titian masterpiece and the secrets of old Venice…