Mikhail Zygar’s book is a massive historical study dedicated to the events that led to the 1917 revolutions in Russia. The author examines this period through the biographies and stories of specific individuals—politicians, revolutionaries, cultural figures, and ordinary citizens. Zygar shows how the Russian Empire gradually collapsed, analyzes the reasons for its demise, and traces the chain of events from 1900 up to the revolutionary upheavals of 1917.