The novel tells about the events that took place in Byzantium in the first half of the 9th century. Against the backdrop of the Empire’s wars with the Bulgarians and Arabs, church-political unrest and the struggle of iconoclasts with icon-worshippers, the story of the life and relationships of the main characters unfolds - the famous Byzantine poetess Cassia, Emperor Theophilus and his wife Theodora. The intellectual life of the Byzantine elite with its problems and life philosophy, the life and customs of the imperial court, the struggle of church parties and the life of monks become the frame for a love story that overcomes all external and internal obstacles and ultimately leads the heroes to realize the true meaning of everything that happened to them.