#BlogTour Play The Red Queen by Juris Jurjevics

Today its a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour Play The Red Queen by Juris Jurjevics.

About the Author

Juris Jurjevics (1943-2018) was born in Latvia and grew up in Displaced Persons camps in Germany before emigrating to the United States. He served in Vietnam for fourteen months, nine days, and two hours, his original departure date delayed by the Tet Offensive. He wrote two other novels, Red Flags and The Trudeau Vector, which was published in ten other countries. Publisher and co-founder of the Soho Press, Jurjevics worked for decades in the book industry.

Read more about books by Juris Jurjevics at Goodreads, on Amazon, Buy Play The Red Queen

About the book

Vietnam, 1963. A female Viet Cong assassin is trawling the boulevards of Saigon, catching US Army officers off-guard with a single pistol shot, then riding off on the back of a scooter. Although the US military is not officially in combat, sixteen thousand American servicemen are stationed in Vietnam “advising” the military and government. Among them are Ellsworth Miser and Clovis Robeson, two army investigators who have been tasked with tracking down the daring killer.

Set in the besieged capital of a new nation on the eve of the coup that would bring down the Diem regime and launch the Americans into the Vietnam War, Play the Red Queen is a tour de-force mystery-cum-social history, breathtakingly atmospheric and heartbreakingly alive with the laws and lawlessness of war.

Review

Whilst the story begins with the hunt for an experienced unapologetic assassin, who is taking out Americans in broad daylight on the streets of Saigon without a second thought - the story ends with betrayal. She is bold, fearless and is working on a schedule - a plan with consequences. She personifies the lack of gentleman's rule and white man's war game the Viet Cong became famous for - ruthless and anyone can be the enemy. 

It's been quite a while since I have read a story about the 'skirmish' in Vietnam that manages to catch it with such accuracy. Jurjevics writes this mystery war crime with the sharp tongue of a social commentary. One of the most contentious periods of the US political interference in foreign countries, which was never officially deemed as something on par with other wars, hence the word skirmish, despite the losses and trauma it left in its wake. It also opened up a controversy on homeland soil the likes of which the US is still recovering from and still apologising to its veterans for. Rightly so.

As the story leads the reader into the above events it's important to add a footnote that warfare against the VC was something the westerners were completely unprepared for and they experienced a completely different thought and tactical processes that cost many lives, killed many and left survivors with lifelong trauma and some never returned at all. 

Vietnam Veteran is a word bandied about without a lot of thought, but it's important to remember that they didn't and still don't receive the accolades survivors of other wars did and do. People find it really hard to separate the concept - soldiers act on orders and are not the ones making the decisions - the top brass and upper echelon does.

I think a great writing talent has been lost where Juris Jurjevics is concerned, but readers can take solace that he left a fantastic body of work in his wake. His books are infused with a stark sense of realism, due to his own experiences, which always gives the reader a different kind of experience. This book is one of those.

Buy Play The Red Queen at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: No Exit Press; pub date 12 Nov. 2020. Buy at Amazon com. At Hive. At Bookshop.org.