Generally well-done story of an American sent against his will back into China after the 1949 revolution to kill a warlord who is planning to betray the rebel forces he leads to the Communists. Of course, the warlord happens to be the American's father-in-law, and his daughter betrayed the American to the Japanese 10 years earlier. So there is some bitterness involved....

Jones knows something about China and the story's background and occasional use of the Chinese language, not always translated, are appropriate and accurate. But the story piles incredulity upon incredulity as the hero, with the unlikely name of Tag Baca, wanders through the corpse-filled streets of Tianjin and into the mountains of Manchuria in search of his prey, ultimately dulling the effect of a rather primal story of revenge. Of course, the fact that a blond female American reporter manages to tag along doesn't help things on the realism scale either, and the comparisons of this woman to his Chinese wife (who perhaps to keep down the complaints of a few misogynists, is half-French) don't have the impact or the poignancy the author is striving for.

Which is not to say this isn't still a good, action-packed, highly atmospheric read, and a great example of the cold war thriller. ( )