This is the first hardcover edition of this classic Edward Lee novel. Veronica is a artist, painter. She's stuck in a relationship going nowhere with an alcoholic cop. So when she meets the enigmatic Marzden and is invited to an artists' retreat at his mansion deep in the country where she can paint with complete freedom, Veronica can't refuse. With her best friend, Ginny, a hugely successful writer, Veronica heads off to the retreat where she is quickly submerged in an almost dreamlike world filled with passionate and violent sex. All the while sensing that there is something brutal and dark hidden deep within Marzen and his two young and gorgeous male companions. And as Jack, Vernoica's recently jilted lover battles his own demons he realizes that she is the olny one he loves and must get her back. His search for her leads him to some harsh and frightening revelations about Marzen and when Jack heads off to the mansion to find Veronica it comes together in an orgy of violence, blood and chaos. Classic Edward Lee. A non-stop, suspenseful and gripping thriller.