Death Stalks the Khmer

Rating:
Summary: Death Stalks the Khmer
Review: As a recent transplant to Washington, I am thoroughly enjoying the 'view' of the area through the eyes of the protagonist, Bridget O'Hern. Ms. Harrington's writing is good, and I can hardly wait to read future books in this series. The story line is quite interesting. I totally recommend this book to others.

Rating:
Summary: Death Stalks the Khmer
Review: As a recent transplant to Washington, I am thoroughly enjoying the 'view' of the area through the eyes of the protagonist, Bridget O'Hern. Ms. Harrington's writing is good, and I can hardly wait to read future books in this series. The story line is quite interesting. I totally recommend this book to others.

Rating:
Summary: A Book For All Seasons
Review: Death Stalks the Khmer is a book that, having read it, leaves you with more than a few hours entertainment. This review is based on just a few pages (but more than agents read before they accept or reject a book, Ha!) and it is apparent that Pat Harrington knows how to punch up a dialogue and how to present memorable characters. In just a few pages I know more about Camboda than I ever knew before. It is on my night stand waiting for the time it deserves.

Rating:
Summary: death stalks the khmer
Review: I am not a professional writer/reviewer but I have read enough books in my almost 60 years to be a professional reader. I was quickly pulled into the mystery by the descriptive dialogue and the desire to know more about the people who had survived the Khmer Rouge era. I like most Americans have seen the news stories and the movies about the horror of that reign of terror but had given little thought to the pain the survivors have had to endure. I thank Patricia Harrington for reminding me how fortunate I am to be an American.

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Summary: AuthorZone.Com Book Review
Review: In Seabell, by their choice, a large community of Cambodians live segregated from the rest of the citizenry. Bridget O'Hearn, while not Asian, has come to know the Cambodian people from her work for the SouthEast Asian Assistance Agency. When Hahn Lys and his wife are found dead in their apartment the SEAAA appoint Bridget to serve as liaison between the community and the police. Enter Detective Jack Patrewski. He and O'Hearn set out to unravel the mystery surrounding the deaths and in doing so find themselves embroiled in an even greater mystery. Before long O'Hearn is convinced that the deaths relate back to the old Khmer Rouge days while whispers of bad karma surrounds much of the thinking of the residents. O'Hearn is viewed by many within the community as an unwelcome intruder, while others believe she is a helpful outsider.

Death Stalks The Khmer is the well wrought product of writer Harrington, who like her Bridget O'Hearn is well versed in the intricacies of the Cambodian refugees living here in this county. Harrington has peopled her work with a fine assortment of characters. The clash of cultures resulting from transporting a large group of people from their own land to what is considered to be a safer enviornment is presented in a deft manner in this well crafted ethnic mystery. As in life, the old generation presented in Death Stalks The Khmer clings to the old ways while the younger generation yearns to be wholly American.

Steinbeck's displaced Okies are evocative of the struggles facing those who fled the terror of Pol Pot and now live in an enviorment very different from that they have always known. This fast paced thriller is reminiscent of the drama found in the works of Dashiell Hammett.

Rating:
Summary: DEATH STALKS THE KHMER is a Fascinating Read
Review: Patricia Harrington's knowledge of the Cambodian refugee community provides an extra layer of realism in "Death Stalks the Khmer." The protagonist, Bridget O'Hern, is a compassionate and intelligent woman who plays a major role in helping the police solve two murders among the Cambodians-in spite of the strangle hold of an evil man who is considered to be one of their own.

The characters are well defined and the story fascinating, but this book goes far beyond the mystery to be solved. By acquainting us with the world of the Cambodian refugees, Harrington educates us about the culture of a group of people who live among us, but about whom most of know very little.

This is Harrington's first novel, but I predict we will see Bridget O'Hern and Seattle police detective Jack Patrewski again. At least, I certainly hope so.

Janet B. Fudala, Ph.D.
CEO, Educational Solutions

Rating:
Summary: East meets West with murder and intrigue...
Review: The author, Patricia Harrington, brings a considerable amount of knowledge to this, her first novel. Knowledge and compassion. She has worked with the Cambodian refugee community in the Puget Sound (Seattle) area for over a decade. With the skill of a veteran writer, Harrington brings the clashing of the American and Cambodian cultures to the forefront in a haunting tale of murder and intrigue.

This story might easily have been clipped from the lead article of a recent Seattle Post-Intelligencer news article. It is that timely. The crime, the emotions, the mistrust of police and politicians, and the wariness of the Cambodian refugees is real enough. I suspect it occurs to some extent with all immigrants. The author brings a set of characters to life in such a way that the reader cannot help but become involved in their struggle. The reader may not know anything about the Khmer when they begin reading page one, but they will know and understand plenty by the time they turn the last page and close the book. It is more than just a book about murder, police, and mystery. It is a book about people trying to balance their lives, trying to "walk in American ways while honoring their Cambodian customs."

As readers, we get a history lesson and a well plotted mystery.

Although the names of some of the characters will have your tongue or your eyes, twisting and turning to get a grasp of them, don't worry, you'll quickly get everyone sorted out...from Patrewski to Sovath Sovang to the protagonist, Bridget O'Hern.

Ms. Harrington has a crisp writing style that is quite refreshing. There is a breeziness and sense of humor lurking in the words that too often would be edited out by lesser writers. Or over written in tired cliches, by lesser writers.

cj

Rating:
Summary: Good mystery
Review: The story is set in the Puget Sound area. The main character is a woman who works as a consultant with organizations. One of her clients--a group that serves Cambodian refugees--has had an employee murdered. Bridget is asked by the director of the organization to help the police since she has some understanding of the Cambodian community.

This story explores the beliefs of the different Asian refugee groups, how they are misunderstood by other Americans, how unscrupulous people can take advantage of them, and how difficult it is for them to leave their past behind. I found this all very interesting and I enjoyed the local setting. I was surprised by the ending. I would like to see more stories from Harrington. I think she has a good start!

Rating:
Summary: exploring the sub-cultures
Review: Unless you live in the Pacific Northwest, and specifically, Tacoma, Washington, you might not be aware that we have substantian Asian communities. I have driven through the Cambodian neighborhood of which Harrington writes. It's on the extreme eastside of town, and the houses were built for WWII military personal and their families--no longer in the best of shape. What Harrington does in this book is capture the plight of the refugees--all that Pol Pot residue--they brought to the United States with them, of which the rest of us are totally unaware. The protagonist, Bridget O'Hern, is a laid-back (at least on the surface) middle-aged professional woman. What a nice change from the disfunctional thirty-somethings that are starting to blend together. At the usual pace, approximately once a year, that a book in a series comes out, I am beginning to find it hard to remember which woman is the PI and which is a Park Ranger, which has a landlord for a mentor and which has an owner of a cab company. And not once in Harrington's book did O'Hern jog, work out or pursue one of those agrivating pursuits that remind me I should be exercising instead of reading! Instead, she gets dragged into providing cultural explanations to the local police when a local Cambodian and his wife are murdered. Harrington is best at talking about the Cambodians and the baggage they brought here, less adept at creating spine-tingling peril. After having read it I find myself looking at the Cambodians with whom I deal with more interest and compassion. I look forward to another mystery with a non-physical fitness women who is intelligent and not overly enthused about kicking bad guys' behinds.