Leaping fire: Revolution and Estonia – A new book by Ingrid Scott

The tsarist empire is tottering - the lines between decadence and squalor blur. Siina, a child in awe of her mother's scant attention, marches alongside her to protest the tsar's edicts. In Palace Square, Petersburg, hundreds are massacred. Siina's world crumbles, her mother comes close to death. Safe home in Pärnu, her mother recovers and introduces Siina to photography. But the fascination with Petersburg returns. The art and brilliance of a city lusting for life are irresistible even as Bolshevism and war with Europe shatter the continent. Siina is seduced both by the excesses and power of the ruling class, her cuirassier lover, and agonised at the misery that surrounds them. Her loyalties lurch back and forth. Her Estonian sweetheart is uncertain; idealism is a lie.