It is 1999. The Last Days, or some say, the First. The climate has warmed dramatically, the cities have imploded into riotous shards, and the sky is a glimmering array of reds and greens and golds.

In fin de siecle New York, a millionaire publisher, a jaded rock star and the girl who, in her own way, loves them both are watching the waters rise as the cults begin the frenzies of the Night of the Thousand Years.

This breathtaking novel is Elizabeth Hand& 39;s audacious attempt to capture in one explosive story both the unspoken dreams and the unspeakable nightmares of her generation.

And she succeeds.