Set in Ukraine , beginning in late 1918 , the novel concerns the fate of the Turbin family as the various armies of the Russian Civil War the Whites , the Reds , the Imperial German Army , and Ukrainian nationalists fight over the city of Kiev .
Set in the Ukraine , beginning in late 1918 , the novel concerns the fate of the Turbin family as the various armies of the Russian Civil War -- the Whites , the Reds , the Imperial German Army , and Ukrainian nationalists -- fight over the city of Kiev .