Meet Solly, a likeable PhD with a weakness for cars, self-doubt, and interests spanning belles-lettres to physics. He becomes a rhetoric/literature teacher and RA at CalTech. Unwittingly, Solly gets involved with his students, especially brilliant Darryl, and with the attempt of local mobsters to recruit Darryl to hack into local municipal databases to demand ransom. Darryl's partner in hacking, Fang Lou, has quit school and is working with the mob. Early in his RA role, bachelor Solly meets and falls for Ewa ('Mia') Kulpa, the RA of another undergrad house. The relationship of Mia and Solly develops as the mob ransom hacking escalates until the threads come together in a violent denouement. The cast of characters also includes Clarence, a 300-pound gay pro wrestler and philosopher; FBI forensic expert Xi Luk; Solly's previous mate, Sweet Caroline; the ambitious criminal leader Sashi; and several unusual undergraduates, Toobee, Zonker, and more. As the book progresses, Solly experiences how life confronts us with choices and how difficult it is to be honest with ourselves.
