This novel narrates events of the 19th century and is the first in a series describing the life and everyday life of society of that period. The plot reveals the activities of the Skoptsi community on the territory of the Russian Empire, describing customs and practices, beliefs, and the cruel rites of castration of men and women in pursuit of an elusive purity of spirit and body—rites that a detective from the Moscow police encountered while investigating a crime of state importance.