Bangkok Haunts by John Burdett
“Even amid the sex trade, demons, spirits, and ghosts exist.”
Overview: A snuff movie, an exclusive Gentlemen's Club and a mysterious monk all have one thing in common: the afterlife.
This, the third in the continuing saga of Sonchai Jitpleecheep, a half-Thai/half-American former-monk-turned-cop in Bangkok, shows both the strengths and weaknesses of this series in spades. This time, however, its flirtation with weirdness takes it right over the edge.
The thing that really set me off? This is a paranormal mystery. It's not billed that way, but that's what it is -- it can't work unless you're able to buy ghosts as semi-corporeal beings who can influence the living (and apparently have amazing sex drives).
Bangkok Haunts is a virtuoso exercise in voice, characterization and setting. However, if you're looking for a straightforward murder mystery, you sure won't find it here. If you understand what you're getting and like the concept, this may be your bottle of Singha; if you don't, you're likely to be very surprised, perhaps not in a good way.
