It's a mishmash. It reminds me of The Iron Dragon's Daughter in some ways -- there's magic that keeps people alive in the service of an undying emperor who is holding down the fort until "god" returns, but society has advanced to the point where there are t-shirts and some small amount of science... oh, and the protagonist might be crazy and hallucinating some times.

And, given the presence of 50 prima donna immortals (all chosen for being the best in their fields, with immortality conditional in STAYING the best), there's no small amount of drama. In fact, immortality allows the execution of the biggest and most impressive grudge matches that I've ever seen, with moves that are impressive in their execution and patience.

That being said, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. It's simply too scattered. There are a number of books that have the same feel to it, and this book is clearly set up for a series that makes the ending somewhat unsatisfying.