The narrative takes place in 1872, beginning at the family estate near Philadelphia but quickly moving to the imaginary country of Illyria, a name that Alexander borrowed from William Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night. Alexander provides the reader with a map complete with sketches of the major locations of the action, including architectural as well as topographical features of the landscape. Such plot devices as this are effective in making Illyria seem real, as does his creation of the Illyriad, an epic poem that traces the history and legends of the mythical country. Its population consists of two opposing ethnic groups, the original Illyrians and the now-dominant Zentans, descendants of ancient invaders.

There are many actual modern parallels, especially in Eastern Europe.

Some of the details in the setting are the result of the late nineteenth-century time frame of the action. Horsedrawn carriages are the main mode of transportation, and...