Be careful what you wish for! An eight-hour orgasm? What should be divine becomes an exquisitely agonizing ordeal for Tessia, who makes the ultimate quivering sacrifice to the god called the Blesser; but for Avia, who takes Tessia' s place when she' s unable to live up to her commitment to the god, it' s a revelation as well as an act of devotion. For Sayi, leader of the Confessory, her lot is to accept the erotic penalties due for others' transgressions and offer them a path to atonement; while Yaeris, whose impulsive decision to participate in the Dance of Sacrifice to the Lady of Arts, faces sensual consequences she couldn' t possibly have anticipated. Welcome to the City, a post-scarcity society without war or disease, ruled by benevolent AIs who are worshipped through rituals of sex and connection. How can a society function with no law, no police, and no hierarchy? When anything you could ever need is available from a Provider whenever you want, how do you find meaning or purpose? When a woman of the City breaks a promise to one of the gods, her decision has profound effects on other people, and she must find a way to atone for her transgression. The lives of four women wrap intimately around each other, in a complex story of transgression, atonement, forgiveness, and creation.