Gin, prosecco and lobster: Malte Dinger is a lucky man; his beverage business is flourishing and his bar even more so, his son is turning into a fine young man and even his marriage is going well. But when a ticket inspection on the subway escalates and he ends up in custody, his entire existence is suddenly at stake. At that point life is already over for the Balkans’ Casanova Branko. There is much to suggest that he has fallen victim to bizarre sexual practices, but Commissioner Groschen does not believe this. Branko’s relationship with the widow of the construction tycoon Hauenstein brings to light the machinations of the new right-wing national government, which wants to stage the upcoming opera ball as a gala for its own ends. Franzobel’s new detective novel is set in the near future, but is searingly up-to-date.