Publisher's Weekly
From the author of bestsellers Century and Ellis Island comes a sprawling, glossy saga of the Collingwoods, a California dynasty of hot-blooded rogues. In 1849, young, beautiful widow Emma de Meyer embarks for America with her father Felix, a cultured, German jeweler, and her besotted cousin David. Before the boat docks in San Francisco, Emma's tempestuous affair with a fugitive bank robber leaves her pregnant. Spurning her cousin's advances, she marries the ship's captain, who joins Felix in establishing a a store catering to prospectors flooding the state during the Gold Rush. At her husband's death, Emma takes the helm of the emporium and weds her bank robber, who becomes a U.S. senator with her boosting. Succeeding generations of Collingwoods survive the Tong Wars, rebuild after the 1906 earthquake, squabble murderously over the family fortune, storm Hollywood, and run afoul of an Asian mobster who wants control of the $2-billion family ranch. Fans willing to overlook jarring anachronisms will enjoy this predictable, yet entertaining slice of California history.