A pair of thrillers are placed up against each other in this connected collection of murder mysteries. One takes place in first-century Rome and tells the tale of Mazuf, a homosexual scribe who is driven to kill. The second is set in the modern day United States and seems to focus on the sexual exploits of a Harvard student until it is revealed that he, too, is a murderer. The two mysteries are constructed as reflections of each other, like mirrors set up in a deserted ballroom, enveloping readers in the stories of the young murderers told through their eyes.