rocky41_7

Book #8 from the Women in Translation rec list: The Old Woman with the Knife by Gu Byeong-mo, translated from Korean by Chi-Young Kim. This book is about a 65-year-old assassin approaching the end of her career who faces one last unexpected challenge.

This book hooked me immediately with its premise. While 65 may not seem old enough in today's graying society to be considered truly "elderly," a hard life can take its toll much sooner than might be expected, and protagonist Hornclaw (her work alias; we never learn her real name) has definitely had a tough road. Letting a woman—and an old woman at that—be the sole protagonist of an action novel like this was fun to read.

This isn't a book about Hornclaw reflecting on her life and career, though her recollections of what led her into this work are sprinkled throughout the story. Rather, Hornclaw is focused on the future. Despite a lifetime of being physically active, Hornclaw's punishing work has taken its toll, and every day she is evaluating herself to judge if she can reasonably continue with her work, or if its time to take her payout and retire. At various times, she fantasizes about owning a small beer and fried chicken restaurant, being a lady who gets her nails done regularly, and having the time and safety to walk her dog more often. It's these small goals which drive home how much of Hornclaw's life has been controlled by the nature of her work, although she never pities herself for the road her life has taken.

Neither is she wringing her hands with regret over a life spent killing for money. Hornclaw is nothing if not practical, and it made her perspective interesting to sink into. Her job is just a job for her; she does what she needs to to complete her assignments, and she moves on. When a relative of one of her old victims comes calling, she has no recollection of them and no particular pity for the role she played in their life. I enjoyed this aspect; it felt like Hornclaw was allowed to inhabit a role I've only ever really seen filled by male characters: the grizzled old veteran assassin.

And of course, even at her age, even recognizing she can no longer pull some of the moves she used to, Hornclaw is still a stone-cold badass.

The story itself was a little less gripping for me, it felt like it meandered a little and didn't have as much time to build up as I might have liked, particularly Hornclaw's relationship with Dr. Kang. Hornclaw is definitely the most compelling part of the book, and I enjoyed it for her narration and her actions. Naturally, the book also has commentary on ageism, as Hornclaw is constantly aware of how she's viewed as she gets old (the quickest way to make her snap is trying to refer to her as "ma'am"), which she uses to her advantage when it comes to her targets, and which she fights against when it comes to her coworkers and clients.

On the whole, this book goes by quickly, and it's fun. It's not the sort of book I'll spend a lot of time thinking about now that I'm done with it, but I enjoyed reading it and it was fun to see such a different protagonist for this kind of story.

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