The fourth in the Amber series reveals two surprising answers… Family blood has been spilled on the Pattern that created Amber, throwing the entire kingdom in chaos. In a desperate effort to save themselves, the princes and princesses of Amber-led by Lord Corwin-search for answers. Where has their father, Oberon, has disappeared to, and what evil has created the black road that unites Amber and that multidimensional world called Shadow? Most importantly,...

Amber is the one real world, casting infinite reflections of itself - Shadow worlds, that can be manipulated by those of royal Amberite blood. But the royal family is torn apart by jealousies and suspicion; the disappearance of the Patriarch Oberon has intensified the internal conflict by leaving the throne apparently up for grabs. In a hospital on the Shadow Earth, a young man is recovering from a freak car accident; amnesia has robbed him of all...