Master of the Game is a novel by Sidney Sheldon, first published in hardback format in 1982. Spanning four generations in the lives of the fictional McGregor/Blackwell family, the critically acclaimed novel spent four weeks at number one on the New York Times Best Seller List, and was later adapted into a 1984 television miniseries. On August 4, 2009 (two years after Sheldon's death), William Morrow and Company released a sequel, Sidney Sheldon's Mistress of the Game, written by Tilly Bagshawe. Publication history Master of the Game has been translated into numerous languages, and reprinted seven times. It was originally published by William Morrow & Co. in 1982. In 1983, the book was reprinted four times; in January, by HarperCollins in June by Thorndike Pr., in paperback format by Warner Books in August, and was later released by Pan Books, in December of the same year. The novel was re-released by Warner Books in 1988. In 1993, Master Of The Game was part of an omnibus edition by a publishing company named, Diamond Books, which was owned by HarperCollins Publishers. The other two books in the omnibus were Bloodline (1977) and Rage of Angels (1980), both major bestsellers by Sidney Sheldon. The most recent version of the book was printed in April 2005 by HarperCollins Ltd. An abridged audiobook of the novel was published on cassette in 1988 by Dove Books on Tape, featuring Roddy McDowall as the narrator. An unabridged audiobook was published in 2009 on CD by Phoenix Books, featuring Shannon Engemann as the narrator, and made available in 2016 on Audible digital download and iTunes digital download. Plot Kate Blackwell, matriarch of the Blackwell family and head of multinational business empire Kruger-Brent Int., celebrates her 90th birthday. She sees the ghosts of her past but refuses to join them until a member of the family is ready to take over. The novel revolves around four generations of the empire's rise and Kate's dedication to the conglomerate. Kate's father, Jamie McGregor, leaves Scotland for Klipdrift, South Africa to find his fortune in the growing diamond trade of the 1860s. He is swindled and left for dead by merchant Salomon van der Merwe but is saved by Banda, van der Merwe's servant, and they steal millions' worth of diamonds in a dangerous heist. An unrecognizable Jamie returns to Klipdrift under a new name and impregnates Margaret, van der Merwe's