Miles Vorkosigan and Cousin Ivan go to Cetaganda on a diplomatic mission, but get in trouble when Miles tries to discover the truth about the death of the empress's attendant and Ivan gets involved with a few too many women.

"Three years after her famous husband's death, Cordelia Vorkosigan, Vicereine of Sergyar, stands ready to spin her life in a new direction. Oliver Jole, Admiral, Sergyar Fleet, finds himself caught up in her web of plans in ways he'd never imagined. Meanwhile, Miles Vorkosigan, one of Emperor Gregor's key investigators, this time dispatches himself on a mission, into a mystery he never anticipated--his own mother. Plans, wills, and expectations collide...