The latest book review of No Way Out:
I’ve never been to Korea, but after reading Jeffrey Miller’s stunning and atmospheric “No Way Out” I certainly feel as if I have. On the very first page, the author grabbed me and never let go as he took me on a pulse-quickening thrill ride through a Seoul that I’m positive no tour guidebook would dare to describe. Nightclubs, red light districts, tawdry back alleys, even the more traditional sites, Mr. Miller described them so realistically, so provocatively, that I could taste the food, feel the effects of Korean rice liquor, and hear the pulsating music of the time (late 1990s). On that note, the author provided a running discography that when this novel is turned into a film (as it so richly deserves to be because I could visualize each scene), the director will have a ready-made soundtrack to use.
The novelist’s bio states he’s a longtime expat residing in Korea (journalist, teacher), and it shows. His knowledge, observations, and finger on the pulse of the place was the key to the authenticity of this story (could it be somewhat autobiographical?). Above all, he plopped me in the shoes of an unlikely hero that at first made me wince because of his naivete and then had me running flat out not only to save my own skin but to try to right wrongs and bring justice. Oh wait, that was the novel’s hero, not me. See what I mean? His skill at making the reader identify with the hero is the hallmark of a skilled novelist. By the time I turned the last page, I was both elated and a bit deflated – deflated because I wanted to be able to launch right into the next Robert Turner thriller.
Right on, Mr. Miller. Or should I say, Write on!
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