Saigon, South Vietnam, 1963: In the waning days of the hated Diem regime, a shattering terrorist attack launches young American correspondent, Paul Brady, on a labyrinthine journey of love, friendship, murder and betrayal. He is joined on his odyssey by the beautiful chanteuse, Kim; by Hanh, a mysterious and enigmatic young Vietnamese; by Shabin, the duplicitous CIA agent,and the villainous Cobra, a murderous renegade agent of the North Vietnamese intelligence agency. Caught in a growing web of deceit, Paul faces one seemingly insoluble dilemma after another as he navigates treacherous cultural crosscurrents in pursuit of the woman he loves. Illusion and truth prove nearly inseparable in this fairyland of political intrigue. A chain of devastating consequences leads to Kim's abduction. Paul faces imminent expulsion from Vietnam. The countdown begins, and time is fast running out...