The third of the Destroyer action/men's adventure series and the one I had been told to start the series with. I'd say that was a good recommendation, as the first two novels don't add terribly much other than how Remo Williams was recruited by CURE, the ultra-secret government agency created to act extra-constitutionally.

Remo is sent into the field with Chiun, his aged Korean martial arts instructor, to discover the whereabouts of a Chinese General Liu, who has disappeared in New York City. The peace talks between the US and the PRC rest on his safe recovery -- remember, this one was written in 1972. The cameos by Nixon and Kissinger are lots of fun. The interplay between Remo and Chiun is great, and Chiun's interaction with various minor characters is outrageously funny. In many ways, Chiun steals every scene he's in.

One of the fascinating (and effective) techniques that Murphy and Sapir use is to periodically offer a short chapter from the perspective of a minor villain who will later cross paths with Remo and Chiun. It adds a lot of richness to the characterization that might otherwise be lacking in what is, in essence, an action-adventure novel.

Is it politically correct? No, not by any means -- Chiun hates the Chinese with a passion and lets them know this at every opportunity, for example -- but frankly, that's part of the fun.

Review copyright 2008 J. Andrew Byers ( )

The main man to worry about, if not counting Chiun, in this book is a Chinese general, Liu.

Chiun does a bit of ranting about the Chinese, or even a lot of ranting, detailing the history of problems between his little Gaulish village, err.. Korean village of Sinanju.

Add in a Chinese girl, some Chinese restaurants, and a dodgy oyster sauce, and you end up in China. When General Liu welches on an ancient debt to a previous master of Sinanju. Chiun demonstrates some advanced cutlery skills, with a sword. A shaken Premier pays up.

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