War Women

Sergeants Sueño and Bascom #15

by Martin Limón

Tasked with covering up a tabloid report about high-ranking officers, US Army CID Agents George Sueño and Ernie Bascom discover a dark web of systemic issues that have potentially fatal consequences.

South Korea, 1970s: Sergeant First Class Cecil B. Harvey, a senior NCO in charge of 8th Army’s classified documents, has long been a friend (willing or unwilling) to Sergeants George Sueño and Ernie Bascom. So when he goes missing with a top-secret document that even a glance at could get an officer court-martialed, Sueño and Bascom take it upon themselves to find him.

Meanwhile, Overseas Observer reporter Katie Byrd Worthington is back to make life difficult for top Army brass. When she lands in a Korean jail cell, Sueño and Bascom are sent to get her out—and negotiate against the publication of an incriminating story about the mistreatment of women in the military that could land important officials in hot water. But what they learn will make it hard for them to stay silent.

Genres: Mystery

275 pages, Hardcover

First published November 16, 2021

About the author

Martin Limon retired from U.S. military service after 20 years in the Army, including a total of ten 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, Slicky Boys and Buddha's Money.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another great addition to the Sueno and Bascom series. This one involves sexual assault on female soldiers in the 8th Army and blackmail by North Korean agents. It is packed with action and runs at a rapid pace. The Kate Worthington Boyd character is not one I care for, but the book is a very good read.

[Annie Yotova · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange is missing - he never reported for work and noone knows where he is. That can be bad enough on its own but when the missing soldier is one with access to all classified documents, things can be really bad.

Welcome back to South Korea and the American Army's compounds in the country in the 1970s. Strange's disappearance (Harvey really but our narrator calls him Strange and had been doing it since we first met him) and cases like that are the reason for CID to exist. So Sueño and Bascom are on the case - getting beaten (of course) and pushing hard until something gives away. Everyone's unspoken horror is obvious - North Korean spies are known to operate in the country and Harvey is in a position which will give them access to documents they cannot see otherwise.

Meanwhile, the reporter we met it earlier books, Katie Byrd Worthington, is back to cause more headaches. She has a knack to be at the right place in the right time (although it is not all chance - she works hard for it). And this time not only she has pictures and a story that can embarrass the chain of command (and even put a stop to a career or three) but she also got contacted from a group of female soldiers who had been abused (in all ways) from their male counterparts. Before long our pair of detectives/soldiers is attached to her and thing start getting even weirder.

Both stories are not connected except for Sueño and Bascom and the Korean Police (Mr. Kill as usual) being interested in both. That's a common pattern in these novels and you know that the two stories will meet somewhere - in an unexpected way - sometimes they merge, sometimes they just brush each other but the connection will be there. And Katie Byrd knowing both almost guarantees that by just being there.

And yet something is off - Sueño and Bascom are way too gullible - both in dealing with Strange and with Katie Byrd; they let themselves be led by the nose by people who should not have been able to do it. One of the issues is that both stories are strictly dealing with the American presence (yes, there is a Korean spy but an earlier book did that better - even if the story is a bit different here - and there is the rush across the peninsula from one place to another and the chase for a specific shop, but Korea is almost missing from this book). Things get better after the first chapters but only because now everyone scrambles to deal with the results from the initial mistakes. And the plots (both of them) get less and less credible as the book progresses.

Not that all plots in this series had been really credible but they were usually weaved together into a lot more credible one and one can just ignore the warning notes. There is nothing like that here. It makes for a good story - but ultimately makes you really wonder how much of that is based on the author's experiences and how much is fictional. In most books of the series, it feels like fiction written by someone who actually was there (as is the case with this author). This one feels a lot more removed.

I still enjoyed the novel though - that deep into the series, it kinda works even with all of its faults. Not a good start for a new reader though - the backstory (the relevant one) is all here but this novel will give a really bad idea to a new reader about what this series is all about or its charm and power.

[Ray Palen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Korean War just does not get the respect it deserves, whether called a police action by some and actual war by others. If it weren’t for the film/TV Show “M*A*S*H*,” there would probably be no love at all for this war, especially in comparison with World War II and Viet Nam.

For this reason, amongst many, I have fully supported the above-average mystery series from author Martin Limon that is set during the Korean War and features Sergeants George Sueno and Ernie Bascom. WAR WOMEN is the latest release from Limon and marks the fifteenth entry in the series. The novel is told from the point of view of Sueno which I have always felt is an interesting choice by Limon. This series tends to take on physical and ethical issues with Sueno and Bascom playing the moral barometer throughout.

At the onset of WAR WOMEN, Sueno and Bascom were commiserating that after two decades into the Korean War business was slow for them since they have been mostly turning a blind eye to the petty black-market dealings of certain NCO’s who just need some extra cash. Business picks up for them when they are assigned a case involving a Sergeant First Class Cecil B. Harvey who allegedly has absconded with a top-secret document that could get him court-martialed if found with it in his possession.

While they are in pursuit of Harvey their investigation crosses paths with that of an American Reporter covering the War named Katie Byrd. Byrd is used to doing controversial stories and claims to have an article she is getting ready to release which will expose the U.S. Army at the highest level for ignoring criminal treatment of women within the Army ranks, up to and including rape. It turns out the document that the man they are pursuing, the Sergeant nicknamed Strange, has similar material to expose the Army for years of abuse that has gone unchecked.

Once Sueno and Bascom catch up with Strange they choose to hear him out and decide to assist him as much as they can without letting their superiors know that they have found him. When the byline from Katie Byrd Worthington hits the papers with the title ‘War Women,’ the Army realizes that it is going to be extremely difficult to sweep these allegations under the carpet. Sueno and Bascom do their part to investigate these charges, unofficially, recognizing that for some of their superiors the results will be career-ending.

WAR WOMEN is a quick and absorbing read which provides complex characters you really believe in and a resolution that is satisfying. The Korean War was one of the longest skirmishes in history and the amount of stories Martin Limon is able to create for his protagonists almost seems endless. I thoroughly enjoy the Sueno and Bascom series --- they are sort of like Pierce and Honeycutt, but with the ability to actually see that justice is done.

Reviewed by Ray Palen for Book Reporter

[James Thane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been a fan of Martin Limon's series featuring Army sergeants George Sueno and Ernie Bascom since the pair's first appearance in Jade Lady Burning. The series is set in the South Korea of the 1970's and Sueno and Bascom are agents of the Army's CID, or Criminal Investigation Division. Through the course of the series, they have investigated a wide variety of crimes and have often crossed paths with their superior officers who are not always happy with the results that the two have achieved. But Sueno and Bascom are much more interested in the pursuit of truth and justice than they are in protecting the reputation of the 8th Army, and they doggedly follow their own instincts in these matters.

This book opens when Sergeant Cecil B. Harvey fails to report for duty one morning. Harvey is an officer in charge of the 8th Army's classified documents and it appears that one of those documents, relating to upcoming joint exercises between the U.S. Army and South Korean forces, has gone missing with him. George and Ernie have often used Harvey as a confidential source for their investigations and they now go in search of the missing sergeant, hoping to return him and the missing document back to the base under the radar and before anyone else realizes they are missing.

At virtually the same moment though, Sueno and Bascom are instructed to track down a woman named Katie Bird Worthington. Worthington is a reporter for a tabloid that is circulated among the troops as well as back home in the States, and she has taken compromising photographs of some high-ranking Army brass. The First Amendment not withstanding, the base commander wants the photos destroyed and the story quashed before it can be printed.

It turns out that, in addition to this story, Worthington is working on a much more serious piece about the mistreatment of female soldiers in the U.S. Army in South Korea. That story could be even more devastating for the Army's reputation and the Army would like that story swept under the rug as well. Sueno and Bascom, though, are much more sympathetic to the victims of this mistreatment than they are to the wishes of their superior officers and as usual they will set their own course.

Limon expertly weaves the threads of these stories into a compelling narrative, however I was bothered by the presence of the Worthington character. Limon introduced her in the last book in the series, GI Confidential, and brings her back for a return engagement here. I had no problem with her role in the earlier book but the character did not work for me in this one.

The relationship between the reporter and Sueno and Bascom is lighthearted and filled with the sort of crazy twists and turns that one might find in a move featuring George Clooney and Julia Roberts. But it seems way too frivolous to be incorporated into a novel in this series. These books have always had their moments of dark comedy, which the author usually handles very well, but I think that the introduction of this character is a misstep and I sincerely hope that she is not now going to be a permanent part of the cast.

There's a very good story at the heart of this book and the mistreatment of the female soldiers is exactly the sort of thing that would normally engage Sueno and Bascom without Julia Roberts or Katie Bird Worthington getting into the middle of it. To my mind, at least, Worthington's presence detracts from what could otherwise have been a truly excellent novel. This time around, though, only three stars from me.

[A.K. Kulshreshth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Martin Limon's Jade Lady Burning about a decade ago, and was delighted to find War Women while browsing on Libby. The shortest possible assessment of War Women, in my view, is that it is better at framing a story than at telling it.

The reason becomes clear from this article that Limon wrote. As he puts it, "the focus of my ire was ... the sexual abuse of women in the military." Limon might have done better if he let his outrage turn into cold fury; the book could have been plotted tighter.

The ingredients are all there: Limon served in Korea (though in less exciting roles than his very engaging investigators, Sergeants Sueño and Bascom; more importantly, he learned Korean and did five tours of duty) and he has stirred in a great cast of characters, an unusual setting, and high-stakes situations.

The issue I had was that all these somehow didn't come together in a synergistic way, the two main problems being that the investigators seemed too naive and some of the situations too far-fetched. I still rate it highly because of what the author set out to do with this work.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Implausible but engaging read along two plot lines: national security and sexual harassment/rape. Bascom and Sueno’s favorite source for intel, the classified material NCOIC, SFC Harvey goes missing. It turns out he’s involved with a beautiful North Korean defector and has been compromised into providing secret info about Exercise Focus Lens. The duo finds him and does it with the chain of command in the dark.

Meanwhile the brass is more concerned about career ending photos of them in flagrante delicto by a pesky American woman journalist and assigns the duo to arrest her- an illegal order. But she has an even bigger story involving a Me Too mutiny by women soldiers in 8th Army over a rape and the chain of command’s appalling mishandling of the incident.

Both plot lines merge into a showdown with the Marines landing on a beach during Focus Lens and it wraps up quickly.

[Larry Fontenot · Rating 2 out of 5]

These Sueno and Bascom novels are very good, giving readers an insight into a time and place most of us know little about. Their roles as "law enforcement" allows them to roam into many areas of investigations and gives a wide latitude into what the reader can enjoy. This time they have fallen into an investigation by a war time correspondent into the abuse of females recruits. It's a nasty tale, and there is little satisfaction in the story. Also included in this book is a tale of the two investigators "friend" who they refer to as "Strange." Strange ha gotten himself into the middle of North Korean sabotage and it takes some harrowing efforts to keep Sueno and Bascom from getting themselves into serious trouble. A good, exciting book.

[Larry Tressler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The latest and I believe one of the best of the series.

Sergeant First Class Cecil B. Harvey, a senior NCO in charge of 8th Army’s classified documents, has long been a friend to Sergeants George Sueño and Ernie Bascom. So when he goes missing with a top-secret document that even a glance at could get an officer court-martialed, Sueño and Bascom take it upon themselves to find him.

Meanwhile, Overseas Observer reporter Katie Byrd Worthington is back to make life difficult for top Army brass. When she lands in a Korean jail cell, Sueño and Bascom are sent to get her out—and negotiate against the publication of an incriminating story about the mistreatment of women in the military that could land important officials in hot water.

[Gary Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fifteenth, Sueno and Bascom book "mystery". The entire collection sits on my library shelves. The two aforementioned characters are military police stationed in South Korea. I believe around or during the 1960's. Having been to South Korea on business in the 1990's, I enjoy the historic perspective these books provide. Plus, the author also served there, in the US military, so he knows what he is talking about. Limón is a very good writer. Pure enjoyment for me, reading how these two less than conventional military policemen find themselves in the deepest of trouble and then how they escape punishments and try to do the right thing. Pure enjoyment. But like life, there are not always happy endings.

[Garden Girl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I was surprised. This is an adventure novel about two guys in the army stationed in Korea during the Korean War. They are searching for a spy and get in different kinds of difficulty while they are searching. This is nothing like what I usually read and I brought it home because of the title. There are women in the story who had been raped by American soldiers and reported it to the higher ups with no action taken. They were able to tell their story to a female reporter who wrote a piece about their situation for the American published Observer newspaper. Thus the title of the book.
This seemed incidental to the book, to my point of view.

[Ivan Benedict · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes place in South Korea, and involves mostly the military people who are there. There are also some other people involved, including a woman who is a reporter. It is a bit of a difficult reading because of what has happened to the women in the military. Women in the military, or about one in 10 people. In this case, many of the women are either late or wrong doing with their lives. The book is difficult to read because of these things that happened to the women. In the end, some of them to get what they deserve.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m sad this is the last book (so far)! I hope there’s more because the focus on Strange and the annoying Katie Byrd Worthington doesn’t seem like an apt closing to the series (I want a reunion for Sueno and maybe see them end their tour!).

There was much more everyday GI detail thrown in which made me feel the series had regained its stride (after the stumble with The Joy Brigade); but also felt like it wasn’t a continuation of the series (other than Katie and Gil being there), more like an episode.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good but not as good as the earlier ones

I liked hearing more of the two Sergeants. The plot was very far fetched especially how lenient the system was on Sgt Harvey at the end.

I hope there will be more but truer to the earlier ones.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have yet to read a bad Sueno and Bascom novel from Martin Limon. And I found that this novel was one of the best. Different crimes face our protaganists, and yet they somehow all merge. I couldn't put it down and I finished it too soon. No time to savor.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was not into either the investigators or the underlying themes in this murder mystery.

[stephen d whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty unbelievable entry in series

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

A little scattered, and then a quick finish

[Naim Peress · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of Martin Limon’s best. A very good page turner. I love his fluid and natural prose. It involves an plot involving North Korea (no spoilers). I love the main characters, George Sueno and Ernie Bascom. I enjoyed the descriptions of 1970s South Korea. This is a good and credible counterespionage story. Limon also tells the tale of the North Korean defector, Kim Yoon-Jeong. Definitely worth reading.

Has anyone read this book or anything by him? Limon has always seemed like an obscure author. If you have, what did you think of it?