Nedford "No-Fuss" Knemis, born in the everglades of South Florida as a mix of Seminole Indian and White American, is taken to Europe to be educated after his parents are killed in an everglades boating mishap. Ned the No-Fuss proceeds to squander his grandmother's inheritance, gambling at the casinos in Europe, and getting into failed marriages. By chance he is recruited by a Greek spy operative to work in spydom, in the Balkans, and in North Africa.
