In a mysterious and shocking incident, Dan Kahn, an intellectually precocious high school senior, discovers during a gym class that he possesses a knockout punch. At about the same time he discovers he can act. These discoveries and his desire for fame lead to choices that bring him into the world of gangsters, movie stars, exciting women, and terrorists, taking him to Paris and Athens, where danger and love follow. Some of the characters he meets are Shamaz, a Mike Tyson clone; Joey Mangiacavallo, a mob boss who plays games Roman emperors indulged in; Sandy Wilson, a Julianne Moore look-alike with a sharp intellect, ambitious spirit, and a lusty bent; and an Israeli woman journalist "for whom sex is like Greco-Roman wrestling." Through all this, the mystery that started it all follows Dan and haunts him. To solve this mystery, he has to probe the depths and risk his life.