Pavel Ivanchenko's life begins in poverty and violence, but he is destined to become one of the richest men in the world: one of the post-Glasnost Oligarchs. He starts his business life trading illegal vodka on the freezing, grimy streets of Kargasok, he ends up buying most of the steel in the old Soviet Union, believing that he can buy, sell, or destroy anything or anyone - especially women. This is principally the story of two of those women: one English, one Russian, who become friends as girls in Moscow, and whose lives then become entwined through their turbulent relationships with the Oligarch. From Moscow to London and the French Riviera, back to St Petersburg, from the grinding boredom of extreme poverty, to the surreal stage sets of fabulous wealth, the story leads us deep into the heart of an unknown and fascinating world, with a larger-than-life man - part hero, part villain - at its centre.