Two mighty forces clashed on the ancient land of Perm. The Orthodox Lord, in whose name people of the Grand Prince of Moscow carry out their deeds, and the pagan gods of the Voguls—dark and frightening. Two cultures, two civilizations, two ways of life… But is the gulf between them really so great? Are the forest pagans really so different from God-fearing Christians? Here, in the Urals, in blood and flame, a new cultural community is forged; the fates of people and peoples intertwine. Here, mortal-war shamans ride into battle on war moose, pushing through a bloody haze. Here the Dead Parma mountain breathes and roars—a haven for runaways. Here they betray and kill for the ancient Kanne Tangi, which gives power over tribes and peoples. Here the Golden Woman smiles mysteriously, dizzying Russian warriors, and in the thickets prowls the fiery lizard Gondyr. “A huge, branching, and incredibly fascinating novel about how people, gods, and peoples walk the roads of fate”—that is how writer Leonid Yuzefovich described “The Heart of Parma.”