Before Putin and his poison, madness had a name, and death was his countenance - Ivan the Terrible. Following the carnage of Ivan the Terrible's sack of Novgorod in 1570, artist Petr Safronov must lead the remnants of Novgorodian society to the outcast lands beyond the Urals. They have escaped the Tsar's man-sized frying pan, but the fires of forbidden love, jealousy, hate, and betrayal await their passage. Only the guidance of Petr's mystical Muse and the knowledge and influence of radical monk Timoshka Ivanov can save them. As the world recoils from Putin and his poison, The Muse in a Time of Madness takes us back to the ancient origins of Russian tyranny rooted in might and madness. At the intersection of mysticism and art, a young icon painter must discern a pathway for the exodus from the enlightened city known as Lord Novgorod the Great. Flavin skillfully weaves history and myth to create a compelling saga of valor and human resilience in the face of unrelenting evil. The Muse in a Time of Madness has been recognized in the Soulful Keats Literary Competition. It is the first book in a trilogy that brings to life the legend of a lost Russian colony in Alaska.