From Laos to Thailand: The Varied Worlds of Novelist Colin Cotterill

Colin Cotterill is the author of numerous volumes in the popular Dr. Siri Paiboun series, featuring the septuagenarian Laotian coroner. Dr. Siri had thought to spend a peaceful retirement, but he is conscripted by the Communist government after the 1975 takeover of Laos. He hopes to make this job a sinecure; in the event he continually finds himself knee deep in murders and cover ups, far from the usual retirement activities.

Siri was introduced in the 2004 title, The Coroner’s Lunch, a “convincing and highly interesting portrayal of an exotic locale… [that] marks the author as someone to watch,” according to Publishers Weekly. Since then, Cotterill has published eight more Dr. Siri mysteries, with The Woman Who Wouldn’t Die appearing in 2013.

Read Full Post »

John Burdett’s Bangkok Thrillers: Bronze Age Mysticism with Silicon Chips

John Burdett’s Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep made his first appearance in the 2003 novel, Bangkok 8. Since that time there have been three more novels featuring the Thai detective, with the most recent, The Godfather of Kathmandu, out this past spring. Many reviewers have noted that in this critically acclaimed series Western materialism confronts the spiritual approach of the East.

A reviewer for People magazine declared of Bangkok 8: “Like Thai cuisine, Burdett’s comic thriller blends spicy, sour, salty, and sweet – and makes for a delicious wake-up for jaded palates.” Carl Hiasson also had positive words about that series premier, declaring: “One of the most startling and provocative mysteries I’ve read in years. The characters are marvellously unique, the setting intoxicating, and the plot unwinds in dark illusory strands.”

Read Full Post »

Bangkok’s Multiple Personalities: Christopher G. Moore’s “Vincent Calvino” Novels

Christopher G. Moore, author of the Bangkok novels featuring Vincent Calvino, a disbarred American lawyer turned private investigator, is our guest today on Scene of the Crime. There are eleven books in this series that began with the novel, Spirit House and has continued to The Corruptionist, from 2009. The first books in the series were published by a small Thai house; now Moore’s books come out in fine editions from Grove Press.

Read Full Post »

Looking for Trouble in Bangkok: Tim Hallinan’s Poke Rafferty

Today we travel to Thailand to examine the work of writer Timothy Hallinan, author of the Poke Rafferty series, set in Bangkok. Hallinan has divided his time between Los Angeles and Southeast Asia for almost thirty years.  He is the author of six private-eye novels set in Los Angeles and four Rafferty thrillers: A Nail Through the Heart, The Fourth Watcher, Breathing Water, and, coming this summer, The Queen of Patpong.

“Hallinan’s prose will engage readers,” declared a critic for Kirkus Reviews of the third book in the series, Breathing Water. A Booklist reviewer noted of the same work, “The dialogue crackles, the sense of one of the world’s edgiest cities is sharp, and the plight of the poor, especially the children, is moving.” Of The Fourth Watcher, a Publishers Weekly contributor noted in a starred review, “Stellar. Smooth prose, appealing characters and a twisting, action-filled plot make this thriller a stand-out.”

Tim, it’s a real pleasure to have you on Scene of the Crime. I appreciate you taking the time to talk about the use of setting in your work.

Read Full Post »