Book Review: Death Stalks the Khmer

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Death Stalks the Khmer     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Patricia Harrington
Class/Genre:   Mystery
Series: Bridget O'Hern
AmErica, Feb 2001, 261 pp.

In Seabell, Washington, lives a large, segregated by their own choices, Cambodian population. Most of the refuges fled their homeland to escape the brutality of the Khmer Rouge reign of Pol Pot. The populace adheres to the culture that Pol Pot tried to systematically exterminate while acclimating to the American way of life. However, many still struggle with flashbacks from the trauma and refuse to believe that the local police want to help them acclimate not abuse them.

When someone kills Hahn Lys and his wife, the Southeast Asian Assistance Agency assigns Bridget O'Hern to serve as a liaison between the Cambodian community and the investigating officials. Because Hahn was Khmer Rouge, he had many enemies and his work for SEAAA did not ease hard feelings towards him. At the same time Hahn had business dealings with powerful Royalists. This contradiction makes Bridget wonder which side wanted Hahn dead and why?

The Cambodian immigration is fascinating to watch as the group struggles with preserving a rich heritage while adopting to their new homeland. Like many immigrants before them, the second generation wants to be All-American, feeling less tied to the old ways. Patricia Harrington writes a intelligent social commentary wrapped inside a clever ethnic mystery with solid characters to support the entire detailed story line. DEATH STALKS THE KHMER is an awesome amateur sleuth story that succeeds in entertaining and educating the reader.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner