Synopsis: The Empress of Earth

After an apocalyptic breakdown of industrial society, Earth is ruled from an orbiting latticework of habitats by the Twenty-Seven Houses, while on the surface civilization has regressed to a pre-industrial state. When a coup begins with the murder of Emperer Roberto IV, his daughter Pilar—now the rightful Empress of Earth— flees into exile on the surface. When she becomes involved with the equally dangerous politics of the groundside nations, she begins to question whether her future lies with her birthright in orbit or among the people of her new home.