The Old Woman with the Knife

The Old Woman With the Knife / Gu Byeong-Mo
trans. from the Korean by Chi-Young Kim
Toronto, Ontario : Hanover Square Press, 2022, c2013.
280 p.

When do you know it's time to retire, if your day job has been working as a stealth assassin for many years? Do you take advantage of your increased invisibility as an aging woman or do you call it quits and relax at home with your dog? 

This is the question that plagues Hornclaw, who worries that she's losing her edge. For example, her reflexes are slightly slower. And there is the fact that she's letting an emotional attachment to a stray dog develop; she's getting soft, even if she does name it Deadweight. But she figures she'll do one or two more jobs then think about a change. Unfortunately, there's a young and cocky new employee at her agency that seems to have it out for her, and she just can't back down. 

The story of these two, and how and why the antipathy between them exists, makes up the book. But we only get it in bits, between a lot of action -- her weak point is a doctor who saved her from an injury once, and this doctor's family gets caught up in the vendetta against her. Will this emotional attachment be the end of Hornclaw's career or will her experience prevail? 

I found this a quick and entertaining read. Despite the characters all being ruthless contract killers, and the inclusion of quite a bit of violence (not too gory), it feels like a lighter read. But aside from the action and dark humour, there is an undercurrent of thoughtfulness. Questions of aging, identity, power, women's roles and what society thinks women owe the world, and human connection all rise up. It's a great combo, and made this a memorable read - I'm still thinking about it and trying to decide what I think of the ending. Hornclaw is a cantankerous old woman and a remorseless killer, but she's still a compelling character that I couldn't help feeling compassion for. 

I'd recommend this to anyone who wants to dip their toes into translated fiction but reads mostly genre; it moves along and has strong plot as well as a couple of strong characters to draw you in, in addition to the intriguing setting.