Tae Sang-ho and Jung Myung-seop; Neo Fiction: 392 pp., 13,500 won
The book is a mystery novel mixed with realistic portrayals and thriller elements. Set in a war zone, it adopts a real spy incident in 1996 in Gangneung, Gangwon Province and the story of Hwang Jang-yop, a former secretary to the North Korean Workers’ Party who defected to South Korea in 1997, and the terrorist threats against the Korean Embassy in Afghanistan in 2003.
With vivid descriptions of the characters, incidents and background, the story includes a variety of information and knowledge about military operations and situations.
The male protagonist named Kim Yu-seon confronts his counterpart North Korean agent as they are both engaged in a special military operation. The story focuses on psychological developments during the process of a military operation entangled with anxiety, fear and tension.
Most of characters realize death is around them while they are in any situation. The book shows how the characters respond to imminent death like they have never experienced before and how they change in the face of extreme fear through diverse case scenarios.
— CHUNG AH-YOUNG