Both Jade Lady Burning and Slicky Boys were praised for their blending of the noir thriller with the police procedural. In Martin Limón's third tale of George Sueno and his army CID partner, Ernie Bascom, the two are enmeshed in the dark and light sides of Buddhism as they again exercise their police skills in a thriller's world. When they come to the aid of a Buddhist nun who is being attacked by what appears to be a GI, Ernie finds himself the keeper of "Buddha's money." He'll need the sacred money as he and George pursue the kidknappers of Mi-ja, the adopted daughter of ex-infantry sergeant, Herman the German. What Herman, Ernie, and George soon discover is that Mi-ja is only the grisly negotiating tool of a man who believes himself the reincarnation of an ancient conqueror. This madman is in relentless pursuit of a jade skull supposed to be the key to the future of the Pacific Rim. A trade--the skull for the girl--seems like the easy solution. But Lady Ahn, the proclaimed heir to the Dragon Throne of China, is not about to give it up.

While this mosaic of Buddhist cults and supernatural relics sounds like the stuff of a 1940s radio drama, it is grounded and modernized in Martin Limón's fascination with his two main characters. In particular, Limón holds a powerful magnet to George Sueno's moral compass, and the consistency in George's voice, as twisted as it is, invites the reader into a world that is teeming with desparate "business girls" and wasted souls. Ernie's penchant for violence and dark humor complements George's cynicism. Gradually, one is moved from fascination to repulsion before settling into a steady enjoyment of an exotic mystery. --Patrick O'Kelley

From Publishers Weekly
An assault on a Buddhist nun and the abduction of the Korean daughter of an American serviceman lead Ernie Bascom and George Sue?o into their latest cliffhanger (after Slicky Boys), this time in search of a jade head that bears a map to the lost tomb of Genghis Khan. Everybody?the Mongol worshippers of the Demon Buddha Mahakala; the followers of the peaceful Maitreya Buddha; and the distantly beautiful Lady Ahn, the current descendant of the last owner of the jade head?wants that head. Lady Ahn wants the two agents for the Army's Criminal Investigation Division to steal the jade skull from the island hideaway where it is being guarded by yet another set of Buddhist monks. Meanwhile, the partners have an assailant to catch (before the victim immolates herself in protest) and a little girl to be saved (the Mongols threaten to kill her if the jade head isn't in their hands by the night of the full moon). There are more than enough plots (and reversals and complications) for three novels in this romp. And although readers might be excused for imagining that Bascom and Sue?o are the only two people in Korea who know what they're doing, that's all part of Limon's style, which might be described as unequal parts hard-boiled procedural and action-packed adventure. (May) FYI: Bantam is promoting Buddha's Money with a 16-page excerpt in the paperback edition of Slicky Boys (on sale in April).Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
Corporal George Sueo and Sergeant Ernie Bascom, of the US Army's CID in South Korea, are up to their old tricks as loose cannons (Slicky Boys, 1997, etc.). What better way, they ask, ``to defend against stupid rules?'' On a typically frenetic night in suburban Seoul, their assignment is to work the black-market detail. Target: off-duty GIs swapping PX liquor for illicit sex. But suddenly all bets are off. ``Something bad happen,'' says one of the ``business girls,'' and willy-nilly Sueo and Bascom are into their maverick mode. Improvising happily, they go chasing up back alleys after several large men of suspicious intent. Against orders? Of course, but that's what mavericks do to separate themselves from lesser men. And it's what makes Sueo and Bascom the hotshot investigators they are--the Army's best, in their opinion. One mystery leads to another. They link a roughed-up Buddhist nun to the kidnaping of a little girlwhich, in turn, is connected to the disappearance of a bizarre though priceless icon, which is being hotly pursued by several bloodthirsty factions. One of the pursuers is a Dragon Lady look-alike, whose focus on the icon is total, but who nevertheless manages to capture Sueo's heart with her slinky figure, obligatory high cheekbones, and defiant black eyes. There are punch-outs, shoot-outs, and mindless action-adventure aplenty before all the cardboard bad guys meet deservedly bad ends. A fast-mover, hurtling from one violent/grisly scene to the next. There's little here, though, besides pace, to hold a readers attention. Gaudy and derivative. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review
Praise for Martin Lim¾n's Slicky Boys:

"These boys are no sweethearts, and their smash-and-burn investigative techniques would get them arrested back home. But all that hot blood is pumped by brave hearts, and in their element these guys are princes."


"This is writing of the first rank, a truly unusual mystery that's not to be missed."


"Gritty...Combin[es] the grim routine of a modern police procedural with the cliff-hanging action of a thrilling old movie serial."


Jade Lady Burning:
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year

"It is not often that so impressive a debut as Jade Lady Burning appears....Searing in its intensity. Without ever trying to be 'literary,' this novel achieves the stature of literature."


"As gripping as it is disturbing."



From the Hardcover edition.

Book Description

"Fast and confident . . . well-drawn and vivid."-The Seattle Times

"A slam-bang thriller. . . . Limón keeps the action coming at a furious pace."-Albuquerque Journal

"The locations . . . are as amazingly vivid as ever, and his wild men heroes are just as good company."-Los Angeles Times

George and Ernie are American military cops in Korea. They work the neon alleys of sin districts, chasing felons and black marketeers. It's not glamorous, but somebody's got to do it. The kidnapping of a child, held ransom for a priceless jade artifact, is more than these seedy cops can handle. They urge the father to pay it. The only problem is, dad hasn't got it. From that point on, officers Sueño and Bascom are pushed into intrigues way over their heads and expected to unravel conspiracies that are beyond them. Can two disheveled, disrespectful army foul-ups cope with all this? Then again, it's not like they have a choice.

Martin Limón retired from US military service after 20 years in the US Army, including a total of 10 years in Korea. He and his wife live in Seattle. He is the author of Jade Lady Burning, which was a New York Times Notable Book, and Slicky Boys.

From the Publisher
Praise for Martin Limn's Slicky Boys:"These boys are no sweethearts, and their smash-and-burn investigative techniques would get them arrested back home. But all that hot blood is pumped by brave hearts, and in their element these guys are princes."
"This is writing of the first rank, a truly unusual mystery that's not to be missed."
"Gritty...Combin[es] the grim routine of a modern police procedural with the cliff-hanging action of a thrilling old movie serial."
Jade Lady Burning:
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year"It is not often that so impressive a debut as Jade Lady Burning appears....Searing in its intensity. Without ever trying to be 'literary,' this novel achieves the stature of literature."
"As gripping as it is disturbing."

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Sueno and Bascom work the neon alleys of Itaewon - Seoul's supermarket of cheap thrills, where brightly painted girls promise a little piece of paradise in exchange for a few pieces of silver. But in Itaewon, the path to paradise can take some wicked turns.... Herman "the German" Burkowicz retired from the U.S. Army for a more lucrative career smuggling Korean artifacts. But the price of one such rarity may be paid by his kidnapped nine-year-old foster daughter, Mi-ja. Sueno and Bascom advise him to pay the ransom: a priceless skull carved out of jade. Working feverishly in a race against time, the two CID investigators discover that the coveted skull is much more than a hunk of jade: It's a long-lost relic of Genghis Khan. But more crucially, it's the key to the destiny of the entire Pacific Rim, from Beijing to Bangkok.

FROM THE CRITICS

Kirkus Reviews

Corporal George Sue￯﾿ﾽo and Sergeant Ernie Bascom, of the US Army's CID in South Korea, are up to their old tricks as loose cannons (Slicky Boys, 1997, etc.). What better way, they ask, "to defend against stupid rules?" On a typically frenetic night in suburban Seoul, their assignment is to work the black-market detail. Target: off-duty GIs swapping PX liquor for illicit sex. But suddenly all bets are off. "Something bad happen," says one of the "business girls," and willy-nilly Sue￯﾿ﾽo and Bascom are into their maverick mode. Improvising happily, they go chasing up back alleys after several large men of suspicious intent. Against orders? Of course, but that's what mavericks do to separate themselves from lesser men. And it's what makes Sue￯﾿ﾽo and Bascom the hotshot investigators they are—the Army's best, in their opinion. One mystery leads to another. They link a roughed-up Buddhist nun to the kidnaping of a little girlþwhich, in turn, is connected to the disappearance of a bizarre though priceless icon, which is being hotly pursued by several bloodthirsty factions. One of the pursuers is a Dragon Lady look-alike, whose focus on the icon is total, but who nevertheless manages to capture Sue￯﾿ﾽo's heart with her slinky figure, obligatory high cheekbones, and defiant black eyes. There are punch-outs, shoot-outs, and mindless action-adventure aplenty before all the cardboard bad guys meet deservedly bad ends. A fast-mover, hurtling from one violent/grisly scene to the next. There's little here, though, besides pace, to hold a readerþs attention. Gaudy and derivative.