About the Author Clive Barker is the bestselling author of twenty-two books, including the New York Times bestsellers Abarat; Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War; and The Thief of Always. He is also an acclaimed painter, film producer, and director. For twelve years Mr. Barker has been working on a vast array of paintings to illuminate the text of The Books of Abarat, more than one hundred and twenty-five of which can be found within this volume.Mr. Barker lives in California. He shares his house with seven dogs, three cockatiels, several undomesticated geckoes, an African gray parrot called Smokey, and a yellow-headed Amazon parrot called Malingo.Clive Barker was born in Liverpool, England, in 1952 and now makes his home in Los Angeles, where, in addition to his work as a novelist and short-story writer, he is also a painter and filmmaker. He is the author of numerous worldwide bestsellers, including The Books of Blood, The Damnation Game,Weaverworld, Imajica, and most recently, Everville.The films he was written, produced, or directed include the Hellraiser series, the Candyman pictures, Nightbreed, Lord of Illusions, and the forthcoming The Thief of Always.Roger Rees received official acclaim in the title role of The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, and played the character of Robin on the television series Cheers. Product Description “Barker's work reads like a cross between Stephen King and South American novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez. He creates a world where our biggest fears appear to be our own dreams.” 'Boston HeraldAs rich as the Rockefellers, as glamorous as the Kennedys, the Geary dynasty has held subtle sway over American life since the end of the Civil War. But they are a family with secrets. Dark, terrible secrets about the roots of their influence, which the Gearys have successfully concealed over the generations. Little do the Gearys understand that their world is about to shatter when an innocent young woman enters their glittering fold. Rachel Pallenberg never dreamed she'd ever meet'much less marry'the most eligible bachelor in America, Mitchell Geary. Swept off her feet, Rachel falls madly in love, lost in a romantic dream that ends with their wedding day. But Rachel is not prepared for the nightmare she faces when she begins to uncover the secret life of the Geary clan. For the Gearys are a family at war. And their adversaries are the members of another dynasty'the Barbarossa family, whose origins lie not in history but in myth, a family whose influence is felt not in Washington or on Wall Street but in the intense, sensual exchanges of flesh and soul. When the prodigal prince of the Barbarossa clan, Galilee, meets Rachel, they fall in love'an all-encompassing passion that unleashes the long-simmering enmity between the families. Old insanities arise, old adulteries are uncovered, and what seemed to be a great American success story begins to erode, exposing its unholy roots. . . . Galilee is an epic from a master storyteller at the peak of his creative career, mingling powerful realism with the eroticism, magic and grand metaphysical visions for which Barker is known worldwide. From AudioFile Barker, a master of atmosphere, meets Rees, a master of vocal drama. Together they present some highly memorable scenes. Rachel, a young wife of the powerful Geary clan, uncovers a fantastic history of the Geary and Barbarossa families. Moving from Virginia plantations, to high-society New York, to a Hawaiian retreat, listeners encounter characters who are also time travelers. Rees's exquisite feel for dialect colors each player with distinction. In a single scene he captures the mysterious storyteller, Galilee, who speaks with syncopated Caribbean rhythm, a nineteenth century aristocrat, and the ingenuous Rachel. Rees vividly draws each character in this tantalizing tale and elegantly projects Barker's metaphysical eroticism. R.F.W. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine