Harper Paperback, 1999 paperback
Good Reading Copy. Book shows wear to cover and some creased pages.

The first dynasty, the Gearys, are a glamorous and rich family, similar to the Kennedys, who have been a power in America since the Reconstruction. The book examines them through the eyes of the young woman who marries Mitchell Geary, the scion of the clan. It also examines the beginnings of the family's power and its links to the Barbarossa clan.

The Barbarossas are a family of godlike beings. The two parents, Cesaria and Nicodemus, came into existence during the Bronze Age, somewhere between Canaan and the city of Samarkand. They have since had four children, though both have been in active relationships with others in the same time. Of the four children, one is a lesbian, one is overweight, one has spent time in a mental institution, and the eldest, Galilee, is held to the Geary family by an oath going back to the American Civil War. Nicodemus also fathered a child, the narrator, with a human woman.

Eventually, the link between the families is revealed, with several deaths. Although several plot threads spin out of the book, and Barker has promised at least one sequel, none have been written, and it is left to the imagination of the reader to work out what happens next.

Book is in average used condition, has been read. Some nices on the spine. A Big 637 pages.