The beginning of the 20th century in Russia was a time of great hopes and anxieties, two wars and two revolutions. While history was rumbling nearby, the inhabitants of the empire loved and were at enmity, weaving intrigues and creating masterpieces. Andrei Aksyonov, a teacher, popularizer of history and author of the podcast "The Decline of the Empire," finds a detective story, a love drama and a high tragedy in historical subjects. Some of the heroes of his book are famous, others are almost unknown, but all appear before the reader as living people: Leo Tolstoy, the head of the Provisional Government Kerensky and the "demonic woman" Nina Petrovskaya, "punks "-futurists and peasant Dukhobors. This is an exciting but reliable story of life in the Russian Empire on the eve of sunset, full of everyday details and unexpected details." Even earlier, in the 80s of the XIX century, Tolstoy was opposed to money. He was ashamed that his ancestors had robbed peasants for centuries and lived at their expense, believed that all evil in the world was from money, and wanted to live simply, content with little: shirt and millet. Of course, the cook prepared porridge from this millet. There were footmen and grooms in the house. And Lev Nikolaevich loved to listen to piano music and replenish the library. Sometimes he was ashamed of these desires, and sometimes he did not notice them. A forgivable property for a great man."