"Soon after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Republic of Georgia fell prey to a series of power struggles, rampant crime and corruption, secessionist movements, and the spillover of the bitter war in neighboring Chechnya. Journalist Thomas Goltz traces these developments... This fast-paced, first-person account is filled with eye-opening details about the ongoing struggles in another little-known region of the former Soviet Union. Featuring memorable portraits of individuals in high places and low, it traces the story from 1992 through the 'Rose Revolution,' the resignation of Eduard Shevardnadze, and the new presidency of U.S.-educated Mikheil Saakashvili."--book jacket.

Prologue : a (new) Caucasian chalk circle -- I. A complex history. The quest for Gamsakhurdia ; A far-flung piece of paradise ; The Silver Fox ; The Abkhazian interlude ; The fall of Zugdidi -- II. Past as prelude. Along the banks of Mtkvari ; (Muslim) Georgia on my mind ; Storm clouds over Sukhumi ; Pending war and the death of a friend -- III. The wretched riviera. Sarajevo by the sea ; Black Sea refugee ; Aftermath in the mountains -- IV. There dwell dragons. Chaos in the Caucasus ; Bridge across the Inguri -- Epilogue : trying to square a chalk circle.