Berlin, Germany and various world cities

Berlin, Germany, particularly the western part of the city, is where the first section of the novel both begins and ends. Erich Ackermann has returned to the city of his birth for a literary reading following the success of his latest novel. He had not been to the city in decades, since just following the war. As a German youth, he had participated in the war, but was all too happy to leave the country in pursuit of a writing career and professorship in England. As he sits in a pub, he encounters Maurice Swift and taken by his good looks, the erotic desires of his youth are once again inflamed. Subsequently, he asks Maurice to accompany him on his upcoming book tour to Copenhagen, Rome, Madrid, Paris, New York, and Amsterdam.

In each city, Erich requests that the hotel place Maurice's room...