The spectacular chess game in The Eight --- the quest for the bejeweled chess set that once belonged to Charlemagne --- has captivated readers around the world with its exotic locales, fascinating historic figures, and labyrinthine plot. Long a book club favorite for the richness of its international themes, The Eight may also have "paved the way" for the reemergence of a timeless genre: the Quest novel.
--Publishers Weekly

Today, that same "Game" resumes, in force, in the dazzling sequel: The Fire. When the most critical piece of Charlemagne's chess set, the Black Queen, suddenly emerges, the quest leads us from 8th century Baghdad to the wilds of Colorado, to Albania, Russia, Rome, Morocco, and into a secret wilderness no one knows about --- hidden at the very heart of Washington, DC.