This long-awaited novel is the story of the rise and rise of the Corleone family, and takes place before The Godfather. The book is addressed both to the legions of fans of the famous saga, and to a new generation of readers who, no doubt, will be interested in the work of Mario Puzo. New York, 1933. The city, like the whole country, is drowning in the abyss of the Great Depression. The time of prosperity is ending for criminal clans: Prohibition will soon be abolished, and it will be impossible for all of them to get along in one city; There must be only one person left at the top. Vito Corleone foresees all this and is preparing for a big war. And now, more than ever, he is worried about his family. His youngest children, Michael, Fredo and Connie, are still in school, and his eldest, 17-year-old Sonny, works in a car repair shop. But he has long dreamed of joining his father’s “business” and also becoming a gangster. And he begins to act - as always, ardently and thoughtlessly...