When the Cetagandan empress dies, Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan are sent to Cetaganda for her funeral as diplomatic representatives of Barrayar. Upon arrival, the two men are inexplicably attacked by a servant of the late empress. When the same servant turns up dead the next day, Miles and Ivan find themselves in the middle of a mystery. Miles tries to play detective in a strange, complicated, and deceptively alien culture, while lascivious Ivan manages to get himself involved with several noble females at the same time, a diplomatic no-no of the first order. As the plot thickens, it becomes clear that it's up to Miles to save the empire. With her usual skill, Bujold addresses timeless issues of human identity through the personal dramas of her characters.

洛伊斯·比約德，1949年生於美國俄亥俄州，是迄今為止獲奬最多的女性科幻作傢。

比約德九歲起開始閱讀科幻小說，濃厚的興趣一直延續到她的大學時代。成為小說傢之前，比約德曾沉迷於生物學，在1985年發錶處女作《以物易物》後。很快就憑藉中篇小說《悲悼的群山》榮獲1989年的星雲奬。

比約德的小說文筆流暢，心理活動描寫細膩。以不同尋常的人物設置、緊張刺激的情節著稱；其代錶作“邁爾斯係列”目前已齣版到第十四部。

比約德共奪取瞭五次雨果奬、兩次星雲奬，其中僅“邁爾斯係列”就獲得瞭四次雨果奬。