Berlin, Germany The son of a sweetmaker, Karl Jochum has ambitions for a life beyond his father's shop. Through hard work and perseverance he determines to open a caf? in Berlin where the Emperor will one day dine. As the city grows and prospers, so too does Karl's business empire, and he rises to become the proprietor of Europe's finest and most luxurious hotel. Situated close to Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, the Hotel Quadriga is a glorious monument to Imperialist Germany. Behind its grand fa?ade, the lives of Karl and his wife Ricarda, along with their two daughters, Viktoria and Luise, are enacted, together with the wealthy Kraus and aristocratic von Biederstein families. From its first opening in the splendor of the Imperial era, through the anarchy of revolution and the wild abandon of the 1920s, to the dramatic rise of Hitler, the Hotel Quadriga is the palatial background to an epic saga, which charts the fate and fortunes of three families whose lives are irrevocably entwined. Will these changing times bring the families--and their country--closer together? Or leave them more divided than ever before? One thing is for sure--all their lives are about to change forever . . .