Inspired by the love of Eva Palmer and Angelos Sikelianos - but not strictly adhering to true events - "Phoenix" is Chomenidis' most ambitious work.

It spans almost seventy years, from 1860 to 1927. It moves from the pastures of Parnitha to early 20th century New York and from the "black 1897" to the Balkan Wars, the Asia Minor Catastrophe, interwar Athens, Pelion, Delphi... A multitude of historical figures - or their fictional reflections - parade through its pages. From Eleftherios Venizelos, Kostis Palamas, Kyveli to Kostas Karyotakis, the folk painter Theophilos, Markos Vamvakaris...

But mostly, "Phoenix" does not leave untouched any of the great, timeless issues. The origin and identity of each person, love, parenthood, the slippery turns of life, faith and betrayal, the anxiety for a meaning that transcends death.

The phoenix, the emblematic bird that eternally burns from its own fire and eternally reborn from its ashes, dominates - even if unseen - from the beginning of the novel. And it is glorified at its end.