St. Isaac's Cathedral is one of the most amazing buildings in the world. Its construction lasted for forty years (from 1818 to 1858). During this time, the Russian Empire was shaken by riots, natural disasters and epidemics, but at the cost of many victims and despite the most difficult trials, the main Cathedral of the country was built and consecrated. Irina Izmailova's novel in a fascinating form tells the detailed history of the construction of St. Isaac's Cathedral, as well as the biography of its brilliant architect Auguste de Montferrand, whose life, full of incredible adventures, can outshine the best pages of the books of Alexandre Dumas. Like the cathedral from Ken Follett's novel The Pillars of the Earth, St. Isaac's Cathedral is the soul of the entire work and serves as a kind of backdrop for a story of love and passion, betrayal and loyalty, a story in which the destinies of many people are intertwined. But first and foremost, “Cathedral” is a novel about a genius who is able to overcome all obstacles on the way to his Divine goal.