Cyprus 1571. The Ottomans are besieging Venetian-ruled Famagusta. Gerolemos cuts his protective amulet into pieces and distributes them to his four sons, who subsequently become estranged from each other. If the pieces of the amulet are ever reunited, they might reveal an immense treasure.

Three centuries later, during the early period of British rule on the island (1878-1917), Adamos journeys like a modern-day Odysseus, guided by his saying: "Wherever I step is my own path." In contrast, the dogmatic belief prevails: "You are either with us or with the others."

Through the novel, the eternal struggle between good and evil is highlighted, as well as the lawful injustice and the unlawful justice, the harsh yet captivating reality of the era, the dire position of women, the colonial practices of the British, the coexistence of different cultures, the racial conflicts, the fervent desire of Cypriots for union with Greece, the wars of 1897 and 1912-13, which lead the protagonists to the Thessalian plain and the Bizani Front, the thirst for happiness, loneliness, greed, hatred, personal devastation, and all that is written on the universal map of the soul.

On the path that Adamos follows, there are companions, deadly adversaries, gangs of toughs and antiquities smugglers, usurers, the obscure and the prominent, a priest who is a model of kindness and free thought, Turkish Cypriots, Englishmen, crypto-Christians, prolonged droughts, the plague of locusts, theaters, brothels, prisons, balls, festivals, conspiracies, unexpected adventures, humorous incidents, and everything born from human enmity, reconciliation, and above all, love.