A novel set in cosmopolitan Athens during the Belle Époque (1890-1910). A story full of stories. A sacrifice that provokes great defiance and great love, intrigues, hatred and passion, small lives and great destinies.

Athens, 1902. Laura Alfieri, countess of Monreale in Sicily and descendant of the Chrysoloras of Byzantium, a woman of unparalleled beauty, is forced to marry the humble but wealthy Zakyntian Philip Romas. She angrily calls him a "coal miner" and "illiterate toad," as the marriage is arranged to save her family from financial ruin. However, without realizing it, the toad will gradually transform into a prince in her heart...

Philomela Lapata guides us through the "city of sorrows" and gives us the stories of a multitude of unforgettable heroes: from Katingo Chrysolora and her sister Margiola, to the psychiatrist and professor at the University of Athens, Aristides Baltatzis, Count Francisco Alfieri, Aunt Kokona Crystalene, and other unsuspecting heirs of memory, whom the author brings to life with a language that is intense, full of sounds, voices, and colors.