Would you alter the course of history if you had foreknowledge of a catastrophic event? Lazarus wrestles with this dilemma as he carries on his business as a healer in 1879 St. Petersburg. Accustomed to working with the talented and prominent, his charmed life gets upended with the introduction of a peculiar boy apprentice who might be the malevolent instrument of fate. "Goodman’s book is a peek into Imperial Russia from a unique point of view. Rich in history and full of curious turns, I highly recommend it." --Jo Niederhoff, San Francisco Book Review