"I know there has never been anything as absorbing for me as my unusual role in the unfolding, and always perplexing, modern history of the Holy Crown of Hungary." With these words, the narrator of this compelling fictional memoir launches into a strange and wondrous tale of devotion and superstition, political machination, and unshakable loyalty to a concept of kingship embodied in a mysterious, bejeweled crown. Stretching from World War Two to perestroika, from Europe to the United States and, finally, back to the Hungarian nation, this tale will appeal not only to Hungarian Americans but to all those who take an interest in the concept of royalty and its fortunes in the modern world.