M. Stanford-Smith

This one is a quick read; things happen at a fast and furious pace. The setting is Elizabethan England (with Venice, Verona and the Scottish Court thrown in for good measure), the basic plot follows a young nobleman, deprived of his inheritance by a scheming relative. Running away, new careers develop in quick succession; stage hand, actor, spy. It isn't great literature, but it is a good read.