The novel’s main heroine is Anna, the younger daughter of Yaroslav the Wise, Grand Prince of Kyiv. She leaves her native lands and sets out on a long journey across all of Europe to become the wife of the French king, Henry I. In a strange, sometimes unwelcoming country, Anna must go through a series of trials, yet she does not lose touch with her homeland: she keeps memories of her home and remains faithful to its traditions and values.