Last Act in Palmyra - Falco takes up a new spying mission for the Emperor Vespasian, to the untamed East. With the Chief Spy Anacrites paying his fare Falco knows anything might go wrong, and so his entanglement with a travelling theatre group and its fortunes comes as little surprise - Time to Depart - Petronius Longus, Falco's oldest friend, has finally nailed Balbinus - one of Rome's top criminals. Under Roman law he is given 'time to depart' into exile outside the Empire. It is not long, however, before a new criminal ring moves into his territory and Falco and Petronius must investigate. A Dying Light in Corduba - AD 73: Rome. When the Chief of Spies is left for dead there is no one except Falco to conduct the investigation. Soon he is plunged into the fiercely competitive world of olive oil production and the political intrigue that goes with it.