Review: The Iron Sickle by Martin Limón

A Mysterious Review of The Iron Sickle by Martin Limón. A George Sueño and Ernie Bascom Mystery.

Review summary: This historical series, set in Korea in the mid-1970s, features two of the more interesting investigators in current crime fiction, who often question the orders of their superiors and risk their lives to find answers. With its unique and engaging storyline, this latest mystery is a fine and compelling example. (Click here for text of full review.)

Our rating:

The Iron Sickle
Martin Limón
A George Sueño and Ernie Bascom Mystery
Soho Crime (August 2014)

Publisher synopsis: Early one rainy morning, the head of the 8th United States Army Claims Office in Seoul, South Korea, is brutally murdered by a Korean man in a trench coat with a small iron sickle hidden in his sleeve. The attack is a complete surprise, carefully planned and clinically executed. How did this unidentified Korean civilian get onto the tightly controlled US Army base? And why attack the claims officer — is there an unsettled grudge, a claim of damages that was rejected by the US Army?

Against orders, CID agents George Sueño and Ernie Bascom start to investigate. Somehow, no one they speak to has been interviewed yet. The 8th Army isn't great at solving cases, but they aren't usually this bad, either. George and Ernie begin to suspect that someone doesn't want the case solved.