In England's young silent-film industry, the megalomaniacal Randolph Fflytte is king. Nevertheless, Mary Russell is dispatched to investigate the criminal activities that surround Fflytte's popular move studio. So Russell is travelling undercover to Portugal, along with the film crew that is gearing up to shoot a cinematic extravaganza. Pirate King. Based on Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance, the project will either set the standard for movie - making for a generation or sink a boatload of careers.