It is the time after the devastating civil war, marked by scarcity, corruption, and collusion. The younger generation has had enough of the old networks. This includes the protagonist, a young writer who has just published a satirical tale about the legendary Queen Tamar from the 13th century. At the center of his text is Tamar's unfortunate marriage to the Russian Yuri Bogolyubski. After he fails to fulfill his marital duties on their wedding night, Queen Tamar, with the blessing of the church, divorces him. The first Russian in Georgia's history is expelled from the country. The message of the tale is thoroughly misunderstood. The Patriarch, the head of the Georgian Orthodox Church, demands a public recantation from him, and when even his family and friends are threatened, the author faces a difficult decision.