why i love inspector o

I stumbled across the Inspector O series of books in the library a couple of weeks ago.  They're written by James Church, which, the book jacket informs us, is a pseudonym, because Mr. Church is (and I quote) "a former Western intelligence officer with decades of experience in Asia".

The Inspector O novels are set in North Korea.  O is a fascinating character, one of the most engaging detectives I've run across in a while, in one of the most unusual settings.

I've quickly become a fan -- so much so that as soon as I finished the first book ("A Corpse in the Koryo") I immediately grabbed the second book ("Hidden Moon"), and I've got the third one ("Bamboo and Blood") on hold.

I ran across this passage last night, and realize it's just one of the many reasons why I've quickly become a fan of Inspector O.  O is assigned to accompany a Scottish policeman sent to Pyongyang to provide security for a visiting British official:

I grinned.  "Yeah.  Get in.  Let's not stand here all the dooh-dah day."

Boswell looked surprised.  "Where the hell did you learn that, Inspector?  Did you know it's from an old American song?"

"I know where it's from.  I have a degree from the University of Karaoke."

Love it. 

Comments

[zydeco fish]

University of Karaoke - that is kind of funny.

[Mike]

I've read each of the three inspector O books. They are an exceptional alternative to the formula mysteries. I most appreciate Inspector O's personality while he carefully navigates through the complex Korean culture.

I check constantly to find if there are any more installments but nothing yet. In the mean time, I've been reading an Inspector Chen series which is set in China - they are good but certainly not Inspector O.