The tenth book in the critically acclaimed Ernie Bascom and George Sueno series set in South Korea in the 1970s. South Korea, 1974: A young Korean woman is found strangled to death on the frozen banks of the Sonyu River with only a carefully calligraphed poem on her person. Sergeants George Sueno and Ernie Bascom, agents in the US 8th Army CID, are called in by the formidable KNP detective Gil Kwon-up to investigate. As they begin to investigate, George and Ernie come into direct contact with the US Army's 2nd Infantry Division, a disciplined and often brutal force that won't stand for outside officers questioning its men. But George and Ernie aren't exactly known for going out of their way to avoid stepping on US Army toes, and this is no exception.
A rarity in fiction that looks closely at daily life in 1970s South Korea, with American troops stationed there in the wake of the war. Author Martin Limon retired from military service after twenty years in the US Army, including ten years in Korea. He is the author of nine previous books in the Sueno and Bascom series, including Jade Lady Burning, Slicky Boys, and The Iron Sickle.