For centuries, Kings, Atabegs and Emirs governed Georgia, but never Emperors. In this novel, Emperor Vakhtang VII rules Georgia alongside black British Empress Kathryn Barkley, someone exotic to Georgians. He decides to change the names of Georgian cities to make people feel he’s got total control. But in fact his power is dwindling both over the country and within his own excesses. This sparks an uprising which involves the whole country. In a parallel storyline Prince Margalite Abashidze tries to organize a coup against the Emperor to overthrow him from the throne. He introduces a new deaf-and-dumb king to society, but everyone realizes this step only benefits Margalite in gaining the power he’s been dreaming of all his life. Abashidze’s ally, Priest Porfile becomes the army leader by manipulating the soldiers through religion. On the other side, the Emperor senses the uprising is about to begin and tries to quell strikes and capture Abashidze before it is too late. The magnificent stories happen everywhere – in dusty, noisy cities and deep, still forests, in the Opera House and in the depths of the “Hispaniola” Sea Brothel – with everything and everyone connected to each other. Although The Shy Emerald is fiction, it feels like a historical novel. And all these historic facts subtly echo Georgia’s current reality.


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