About the book: 2019 / The plot of the book unfolds in two time layers. Elena, a historian by training, lives and works in Rome. One day she receives an ancient manuscript from a Venetian colleague, the study of which turns into an exciting adventure that changes her life. The historical part of the novel is based on the scandal surrounding the theft of diamonds in the imperial family. The action takes place in St. Petersburg in the 1870s. A young student of the Catherine Institute, Elizaveta Lazareva, dances at a ball with Grand Duke Nikolai Konstantinovich. At a concert at Pavlovsky Station she meets his father. Further developments reveal the closeness between the characters of the two eras.