Dragon Teeth

Personal, political and historical events merge in this taut espionage thriller by former CIA officer and prominent Watergate figure Hunt (Izmir). When 47-year-old Mark Brand retired as a CIA operative to work in a deep-cover think tank, he assumed life would be more orderly. He is sucked back into a vortex of international intrigue, however, when his 24-year-old son, Peter, an Asian bank investor, is thrown into prison for spying on mainland China. While searching for Peter, Mark discovers that China is arming missile warheads with deadly gas aimed at Taiwan. If they are launched, Mark knows, U.S. policy demands support of Taiwan. The dramatic energy in the novel does not reside in the author's grip on human feeling and motivation but in his compelling account of government tactics to forestall the event. The CIA's Far East Chief, Darman Gerold is also involved with Dragon Teeth (the code name for the China-Taiwan problem). Mark learns that Darman is shadowed by rumors of incest (in the past with his mother, in the present with his daughter) that darken his chance of becoming Director of the CIA. Aided by the Feng Tsu tribe in China, Mark locates Peter. He is also reunited with a long-lost love and a newfound daughter. Key action sequences and relish for the geopolitical game boost this hefty thriller. (May)