When Christ and His Saints Slept is a historical novel written by Sharon Kay Penman, published in 1995. It is the first of Penman's Plantagenet trilogy, followed by Time and Chance, Devil's Brood, Lionheart and A King's Ransom. In the book Penman introduces the genesis of the Plantagenet dynasty as Empress Maude battles to secure her claim to the English throne, ultimately more for her young son Henry Plantagenet, than for herself. Penman chronicles the story of cousins Maude and Stephen as they fight for England’s throne.