SOLDIER OF FORTUNE (1954)

"The sun was already screaming hatred at the hills when the Pioneer Mail slipped through Sulphur Channel and entered the harbor of Hong Kong."

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So begins the first chapter of Soldier of Fortune, an early 1950s Cold War adventure piece set against the background of Hong Kong just after the Korean War and the intensifying Cold War with Communist China. Pleasurably cliché, the plot has a familiar Casablanca-esque vibe to it, albeit with substantially less sand and noticeably more humidity.

Soldier of Fortune serves you the typical cast of characters: there is the beautiful, brave, noble female protagonist and the world-weary cynical hero. You also have a cadre of scurrilous but ultimately lovable supporting characters. However, the standout performances come from the sights, sounds and smells of the cities of Hong Kong, Kowloon and Macao in which the book is set, and that the author paints with vivid detail.

This vintage copy is slightly used, but in otherwise great and very readable condition. Published in 1954.