No one believed her when as a child Margot Benedict's younger brother repeatedly acted violence on her. The daughter of a Society Bride and wealthy businessman, Margot has risen above the expectations set for her by society and her family to become one of the few female doctors of the United States in 1920.
Preston Benedict has never liked his siblings, but especially not the overly-smart, unfeminine Margot. Preston joins the Great War and finds himself in the East. He meets several characters during the war, including Major Frank Parrish and Preston's batman, Carter. When he returns home, Preston Benedict is in possession of a strangely powerful jewel. The Sapphire of Roxanna - the sultan's bride - appears to give the young Benedict an unusual power over the world around him which only enhances his inherent malice.
Frank Parrish was sent from the East to an Army encampment where his arm, damaged in an explosive clash between Arab and British forces outside Jerusalem, is amputated. His journey takes Frank through a Virginia hospital . There his childhood sweetheart erases any hope from their understanding. Frank decides to travel beyond his Montana home to Seattle, Washington.
In Seattle, Frank runs into Preston Benedict again, and their enmity reignites. When Frank appears to form an attachment to the Benedict doctor-daughter, Preston's already unstable temperament finds new ways to display itself. Frank and Margot, along with others from Preston's past, must find a way beyond the sapphire to freedom before Preston Benedict has a chance to spoil the chance.
The first installment of the Benedict story introduces the reader to a world of luxury and the elite. Though the Benedict family is blessed with anything they could hope for, something in the youngest son's make-up dictates danger for the rest of the family. Strong themes of class and race relations weave through the Benedicts' story. Relationships both familial, platonic, and romantic play a key role in the development of both Margot and Frank's story. With intermittent violence and mature events this is an adult read; though more mature high school readers are able to follow Campbell's complex storytelling.
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