Franklin M. Davis (1918–1980)

Cold war thriller, circa 1962, paints a pretty good portrait of Hong Kong and Macao, and even throws in a credible insight or two into Chinese psychology. Unfortunately, the plot sometimes seems as if the author is making it up as he goes along, and the characters remain ciphers throughout. Perhaps if I had read the previous book Davis wrote about Quinn Leland, I would know a little more, but somehow I doubt it. The plot revolves around a plan to help a Chinese nuclear physicist and his daughter, whom Quinn knows by sight, escape from the Mainland to Hong Kong via Macao. A series of double and triple crosses ensues. The narrative moves fast enough to keep your attention, but it's a meal that doesn't satisfy - I'm hungry for another book already.

Looked up Davis's biography - pretty amazing. He was a Major General in the US Army, an author, and an exponent of Transcendental Meditation. Interesting to think that he published this book while a military officer -- but he did have an undergraduate degree in English (and Economics). Another interesting character, rescued from obscurity! See:

http://istpp.org/military_science/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_M._Davis,_Jr… (altro)