The novel follows six core families[1] set in locales such as Montmartre, Notre Dame and Boulevard Saint-Germain.

[2] "This saga is filled with historical detail and a huge cast of characters, fictional and real, spanning generations and centuries.

But Paris, with its art, architecture, culture and couture, is the undisputed main character."

- Fort Worth Star-Telegram[4] "Both Paris, the venerable City of Light, and Rutherfurd, the undisputed master of the multigenerational historical saga, shine in this sumptuous urban epic."

— Booklist[4] A columnist for The Telegraph, however, gave it a rather scathing review calling the novel "swollen", "encyclopedic", and saying further that "character and plot are blithely sacrificed on the altar of trivia with every turn of the page.