Ryan Azarcon, the son of a notorious starship captain and planetary aristocrat and grandson of an admiral and diplomat, is a good-looking, spoiled, young celebrity constantly hounded by the media. He is also, by virtue of his pedigree, in the middle of all the conflict generated by the ongoing war with the alien strits, who Lowachee introduced in Warchild. As this story opens, Ryan is desperately trying to escape the memories of a bombing at his grandfather's embassy. Then, when his father takes unpopular action, Ryan is targeted by assassins. To protect him, Captain Azarcon orders him aboard his ship, the Macedon. Similarity to recent headlines and their generators lend plausibility to the tale, as does Ryan's reaction when he realizes that mediacrats can be deadly."