Secret Mission Tibet

Secret Mission #6: Tibet. America and Russia are both losing their orbiting satellites. Somewhere in Tibet the Chinese are using a laser weapon to burn out the instruments on board, leaving the satellites out of control. However, they haven’t pinpointed the exact location of the weapon, so an old friend, Richard Newton, a NASA scientist asks Phil Sherman to assist the CIA in locating and destroying the weapon. Sherman isn’t a CIA operative, though he does jobs for the CIA occasionally. He owns an import/export business in Paris. Of course, he agrees, and is flown in by George Hardy, a pilot with the CIA.  Sherman finds the weapon, but Chinese soldiers in an abandoned monastery protect it. Sherman contacts the CIA by radio, giving the location, but Hardy and his plane is shot out of the air and Sherman captured. Dr. Liu Chung-lin is in charge of the monastery, and working for him is a German, Otto Von Kruger and his daughter Suwary (Eurasian), and an American scientist named Bill Rogers. It doesn’t take long for him to plan an escape, taking everyone with him, and destroying the weapon in the process. But now they must escape across Tibet to Kashmir with the Chinese on their trail. This was another good entry in the series, but strangely ends as they reach Kashmir, with some of the story untold.  A fun read, though (spoiler alert) everyone but Sherman is killed by the end.

The Run From The Mountain

“The Run From The Mountain” by William Groninger. Young Herman Wakely was fresh out of tank and infantry training when he was sent to Occupied Japan in 1946, and assigned to Headquarter I Corps, Military Police Platoon, in Kyoto, with no MP training. Training would be on the job. Wakely would spend his three years with I Corps, and these are his memories of the time.

Sadly, there is no central plot, just little episodes. Men come and go, so we never know who will be in the next sequence. To add to the problem the writing is awkward. The sentences are extremely long, with way too many commas. It suffered from lack of tightening, and good editing. Even though this is a soldier’s story, to the author’s credit the profanity is kept to a minimum. There was only one “f” word within the first 75 pages. I was also disappointed that some of the units were not identified, as my old MP unit, the 720^th MPs patrolled Tokyo during the Occupation. After a year Blakely leaves the MPs for Special Services.

Although the story lies somewhere between truth and fiction, I would allow a little truth, a little imagination, and a lot of fiction. I did enjoy the story, especially since some of it was about the Military Police during this time. As it was, many men were selected for MP units just because they were big and tough, or at least looked mean and tough. They needed to be. The cities were wide open, with prostitution, black market, and every kind of contraband imaginable. The GIs were also a big problem. Alcohol makes anyone mean, and American GIs are no exception. MPs had to get rough with them to keep them in line. Later, MPs would be sent through training before assigned to units, and it was their career field. How Blakely left the MPs so easily, since they are forever undermanned, leaves me wondering if it was really his idea or the unit’s to get rid of him. Another situation that left me flabbergasted was when he tells his CO he has decided not to reenlist; they relieve him of duty and cut his orders instantly, and he’s on a ship home that night. Orders and rotation do not happen that fast in the real Army. But it’s the ending that I like best about the book; the feeling when you leave a unit, and the men you served with behind, knowing they had meant the world to you, but now they were in the past, and would be soon forgotten. Read the following by the author:

“It happens like that all the time in the Army.” I said, thinking now of Dillavou. “You meet guys and they’re your friends, then they go or you go. And you never hear from them again. It’s sort of like your life. Things happen you think are really important, but then they pass, and the people that were a part of them go too, and the only real significance is that they happened to you.” And I knew suddenly it was true and that was the way I felt. In a way it pleased me, but it also made me feel lousy to realize that was truly what I believed.

I was not aware of this story when I wrote my own novel about an MP unit in France during the early 1960s. It’s probably a good thing, for I wouldn’t have wanted this novel to influence COLD WAR HEROES. At least mine was tight, and had a plot, though it wasn’t received very well. Readers didn’t understand it was a satire, and were expecting something else. For readers interested in this period of Japan’s Occupation, however, I highly recommend this book, as it will give you an insight into that time of chaos, and the problems of Japan trying to rebuild their nation under the eye of American military presence.

Tom Johnson

Author of COLD WAR HEROES

Bangkok Haunts

Sanchai Jipecheap #3: “Bangkok Haunts” by John Burdett. The title fooled me, thinking haunts referred to places, as in favorite haunts to visit. Instead, we’re talking supernatural haunts and ghosts. Yes, we’re still in Bangkok, Thailand, and surrounded by crooked police, strip bars, and prostitutes. This time the prostitute murdered was Damrong, an old lover of Sanchai’s who was murdered in a snuff film. Snuff films are x-rated porn movies in which someone is killed. The investigation leads Sanchai to a powerful British lawyer and an oriental banker with powerful friends. Plus, Sanchai’s boss, Colonel Vikorn warns the detective off the case because he’s blackmailing the banker himself. But the murdered prostitute comes to his dreams every night, and he must find her killers. An odd Cambodian Monk is also haunted by the girl, and puts himself in Sanchai’s path for some reason. The story comes to a violent end in an elephant compound in the jungle, Sanchai is held captive with two of the killers by the spirit of Damrong. A wild read, and lots of fun.

Bangkok Tattoo

Sanchai Jipecheap #2: “Bangkok Tattoo” by John Burdett. A lot is going on in this second novel of the series. Sanchai is training a new partner on the District 8 Royal Thai Police, Lek, who is a woman trapped in a man’s body. Sanchai is also working for his mother at The Old Men’s Bar; catering to older Americans from the Vietnam era who come to Thailand on tours. One of the prostitutes returns from a trick with blood all over her, and high on Opium, claiming to have killed the customer. Sanchai discovers the body of a huge American has been castrated, and the skin on his back cut off. The prostitute, Chanya Phonychit is told by Colonel Vikorn to sign a false statement, and then disappear; the dead man is a CIA agent. Sure enough, the CIA wants to know what happened, and if Vikorn has any information he isn’t sharing the truth with them. The victim was only the first, however, for soon other men are found also castrated and their skin ripped off their back. The clues lead Sanchai to a famous Japanese tattooist living in Bangkok, but what’s behind the murders, and is Chanya in this deeper than she’s telling? This was another good mystery, though a bit slow in the beginning, as we are introduced to all the prostitutes and nightlife in Bangkok. Plus, even though two of the victims were CIA agents, this was merely a red herring, as were other leads. Of course, we shouldn’t have been fooled, as the title gives the case away, it has something to do with the tattoos, of course. Still, a good read, with interesting characters, and the author doesn’t try to teach you about Bangkok, instead he gives you a guided tour of the city and it’s people. Lots of fun.

The Unfaithful Lady

“The Unfaithful Lady” by Charles Pettit (Charles Pettit McIlvaine, Protestant Bishop Episcopal Church, US). Set in China, the elegant infidelities of Madame Li Pei Fou: Written and originally published in 1928, this edition was reprinted by AVON in 1948. Bored by her husband’s lack of romantic attention, when he leaves on an extended trip, she sets her eyes on young men in the household to form a tryst. Unable to resist her charms, they still must worry about a terrible death should the master of the house discover the infidelities. Written by a Protestant Bishop in 1928, the story is quite tame to something written today. A boy we will come to know as Grain of Rice becomes instantly captivated, but should he find comfort in her arms, or find romance with someone less dangerous.  Great cover, and a fun read, though a bit dated. 

Bangkok 8

Sanchai Jipecheap #1: “Bangkok 8” by John Burdett. Bangkok detectives, Sanchai Jipecheap and Pichai Aparidee are following a black American Marine, William Bradley under orders from Colonel Vikorn, but they don’t know why. They lose track of the embassy marine several times in the heavy Bangkok traffic, once when he picks up a girl somewhere, and finally when they have to radio in asking for traffic to report the position of the marine’s car when seen. They are soon notified that the car has been reported stopped under a bridge, and proceed to that location. Arriving, they watch a group of Khmer gangsters leave on motorcycles while locals are gathered around the car. Inside, they see a huge python wrapped around the marine’s neck, and there are blocks in the door, locking them shut. Pichai shoots through the window killing the snake, and then works the door open and pulls Bradley out. Unnoticed by the police detectives there are over a dozen cobras also in the car, many within the sergeant’s clothing; one bites Pichai in the eye. Sanchai shoots the rest of the snakes, but it’s already too late for his partner. The girl is not in the car.

Wow. If we could give more than a 5-Star rating, this book would easily get a 6-Star review. Not only is the narrative and dialogue enjoyable, the writing is excellent: smooth, tight, fast, and a page-turner. Bangkok is a city of prostitutes and corrupt police; the main source of economy is the sex trade. The author shows us the streets and bars, and seedy atmosphere of the city, yet we never see a sex scene, and the profanity is few in this 431-page novel. The mystery is topnotch, and the characters three-dimensional. There is some violence, but again, it’s about the story, not the violence. For iexample, Sanchai and FBI agent, Kimberly Jones attend a Muay Thai boxing tournament, but arrive at the end of the bout. We do learn the real story behind Muay Thai martial arts (not the regulated sport), which was very interesting.

Sanchai and Pichai were the only incorruptible police in District 8, maybe all of Bangkok, for that matter. With Pichai now dead, that leaves only Sanchai unblemished. Sanchai is a half-breed, half Thai, half white-American: His mother is a prostitute, and during the Vietnam War, American soldiers often came to Bangkok for R&R. He never knew his father. They had married, and he took her to the states, but his family did not approve of her, so she returned to Thailand to raise her son, often living with other men, while Sanchai learned the hard facts of life. But he feels a need to find the murderer of his dear friend, and vows vengeance, sensing it favorable in Buddha’s teaching. But he soon learns there is more to the case than even he can imagine, and it will engulf Southeast Asia and America. This is a novel hard to put down, and definitely a fun read.