Random House Publishing, 2003 Softcover, Used Like New.
Randolph Sontime--mysterious, rich, powerful, charismatic--walks one day into the office of New York psychiatrist Anne Kramer and confesses, casually, to the brutal murder the press has dubbed "the crime of the century" (exactly who has been murdered isn't clear at this early point in the book). He tells Anne she must understand why he committed the crime. First, though, she must know who he really is.
Thus begins a fantastic tale of ancient magics, of love, obsession and betrayal. Millennia ago in Egypt, Sontime was Han, a young man chosen for education in the mystical House of Ra, repository of all the arcane wisdom of the world and training ground for all the world's Practitioners. There Han meets Nefar, a beautiful young woman, and Akan, a studious young man. Each is individually gifted, but together they are much more--a triad of power whose like has never been known before. Their pursuit of this union, and of the forbidden secrets of the House of Ra, transforms them in unimaginable ways, but also unleashes tragedy and ruin. Determined, in atonement, to use their magic only for good, they create a work of sorcery intended to change the world--but the triadic unity that's the basis of their power is torn by jealousy and ambition, and things go terribly wrong.