BRAD WEST

Brad West is a part-time spy for the CIA.

Well, spy might be a bit of an exaggeration. He is a college student, or at least he is at the start of the first recorded adventure. He is a graduate student eking out a minor living teaching undergrads at the University of Arizona. He got the gig because the professor for whom he works is the illustrious Dr. Richter, a probable Nobel recipient of anthropology and candidate for President of the United States, and West's step-father.

Before you suspect some nepotism at work here, and you would be right, it is decidedly not favoritism at work. Richter has very little emotion towards his step-son and none of it good. Richter has little emotion except contempt towards virtually anyone who does not subscribe to his theory that human life really started in the Americas and branched outward from there. He has used that controversial idea to become a talk-show favorite and then to become the darling of the right-wing politicos. That support would then push him into the Oval Office, he hoped, that and some help from the Chinese.

West's existence is a good one, albeit on the cheap, teaching at times, studying at times, and rock-climbing the barren cliffs all over the desert of Arizona. Then two things happen that drastically and permanently change his life. He meets a beautiful young Chinese Air Force officer in America for a training lesson (or so she thinks). And he gets fired and expelled for no stated reason and forced out of the university.

Then the girl and he get close and the CIA show up to offer some help and the girl's unloved fiancée, who is planning on becoming the next President of China while helping Richter become the American President, gets really unhappy with West knowing his girl.

That's when things get happening.

It is the dialogue in this series that stands out the most for me when I think of the Brad West adventures. At least the things that West and his friend say that come across so realistic. I can actually hear college students talking like these guys do - especially the put-downs and jabs.

The rest of the books are a whole lot harder to believe and quite a bit harder to follow. Things get really strange really fast and then it is like the world gets used to this new normal, settles down for a bit, and then ramps up the confusion a bit more.

The Chinese are trying hard to take control of, well, everything. West's step-father, who truly hates everything, wants to become President but that does not work so he becomes his own brother through plastic surgery and then ... well, that's kind of where I got lost.

If it weren't for the lovely Yu May Hua, I might have given up on these books. I liked her a lot. Life dumped a bunch on her real fast and she proved she could carry quite a load. She was fun.

The rest is fun, too, but confusing. Take notes.