A thriller with attitude to spare, Bangkok 8 is a sexy, razor-edged, often darkly hilarious novel set in one of the world’s most exoti...
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Mar 15, 2009
RandomAnthony
rated it: 
Bangkok 8 reads like the bastard offspring of a yaa baa-fueled brainstorming session between James Ellroy, Elmore Leonard, and a Buddhist monk gathered around a manual typewriter in a South Asian bar with slowly rotating ceiling fans in the late afternoon, about four hours before the impossibly beautiful whores (who may or may not be women) come out for karaoke and transaction.
Also, any book that features a male Thai Buddhist cop drunk and pole dancing to Tina Turner’s “Simply the More...
Also, any book that features a male Thai Buddhist cop drunk and pole dancing to Tina Turner’s “Simply the More...
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Dec 13, 2009
Naeem
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The novel Platform got me interested in the cultural political economy of sexual tourism, sexual encounter, and the sex service industry.
Then I heard about John Burdett's 4 novels (3 are out, he is writing the 4th one) based in Bangkok. Each is a detective story. The main character is what I call a "mixo" -- thai mother, african-american father. His mother is a retried sex worker, and he is a non-currupt detective who following the 8 fold path of Buddhism. The setting More...
Then I heard about John Burdett's 4 novels (3 are out, he is writing the 4th one) based in Bangkok. Each is a detective story. The main character is what I call a "mixo" -- thai mother, african-american father. His mother is a retried sex worker, and he is a non-currupt detective who following the 8 fold path of Buddhism. The setting More...
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Jul 22, 2007
Brendan
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We’re all exasperated with the police at one time or another. But in Bangkok, the pique is simply more acute.
“I used to buy whole trays of Rolex watches for police officers,” the city’s top sex tycoon complained to The New York Times recently. “I used to carry cash in black plastic bags for them. But they are still harassing me.”
In John Burdett’s thriller Bangkok 8, the half-Thai, half-American, all-Buddhist detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep -- as dry and charming as a good More...
“I used to buy whole trays of Rolex watches for police officers,” the city’s top sex tycoon complained to The New York Times recently. “I used to carry cash in black plastic bags for them. But they are still harassing me.”
In John Burdett’s thriller Bangkok 8, the half-Thai, half-American, all-Buddhist detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep -- as dry and charming as a good More...
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Nov 26, 2007
Jessica
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With a bang (or, rather, a venomous bite) John Burdett introduces us to the spiritual, yet corrupt, world of Bangkok policing, with the murder-by-drug-crazed-cobra of an expat African-American Army office in Bangkok. The attack also kills a police officer, and his partner/spiritual brother, seeks his killer. This reveals a colorful world of expat decadence, business-oriented prostitutes, corrupt cops, spicy food, Buddhism, hospitals specializing in transsexual operations, the jade trade, and som
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Mar 13, 2008
Tara
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i liked this book, but wasn't ultimately totally satisfied with it. i usually like to finish a fluff-type book like this with a feeling like "ahhhhhh that was good," but at the end of this one i just kinda felt like "meh."
i really liked reading about thailand/bangkok, given my obsession with the region, so that was cool. but the characters didn't really have a lot of depth (and were sometimes pretty implausible), and i wanted the plot to have more twists and tur
i really liked reading about thailand/bangkok, given my obsession with the region, so that was cool. but the characters didn't really have a lot of depth (and were sometimes pretty implausible), and i wanted the plot to have more twists and tur
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Jan 04, 2011
Osho
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This is the first of three currently available mysteries whose protagonist is Sonchai Jitpleecheep, a half-white, Buddhist Thai detective with a bar girl mother. Most of the action takes place in Bangkok.
What's most enjoyable about this mystery is how the narrator sees and describes the world from a cultural perspective that is likely to be very different from the Western reader's construct. This is highlighted by his interactions with the FBI agent assigned to work with him. Their a More...
What's most enjoyable about this mystery is how the narrator sees and describes the world from a cultural perspective that is likely to be very different from the Western reader's construct. This is highlighted by his interactions with the FBI agent assigned to work with him. Their a More...
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Mar 12, 2008
Susan
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This book was not what I expected. I thought it would be a thriller, or a detective novel. Rather, it is an insightful look into the sex & crime culture in Bangkok Thailand. The author writes (through the voice of the narrator) "This isn't a whodunit, is it? More like a whatwillshedonext." That's a perfect description of this book. You figure out the details of the crime as you read, but more importantly, you understand WHY things happen. And the WHY is in the context of the dee
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Jan 05, 2008
Yulia
rated it:
dare i say, after nearly proclaiming book rape for having to read "bangkok haunts," i went easily and pleasantly through this, the first in the bangkok series. it's lighter on the preachiness and has fewer embarrassingly didactic monologues, and i was nicely surprised that, in this novel, unlike "bangkok haunts," burdett actually justifies the social and criminal threat in the information held by the blackmailer(s) against the foreign big wig. so yes, if you're up for a thr
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Dec 17, 2009
Sarah
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I am so thoroughly amazed at this book. I had read interesting reviews about it, so when I saw this next to the next book (Bangkok Tattoo) at the Friends of the Library sale, I jumped on it.
Allow me to preface by saying that I love good crime noir book- one where the heroes are as flawed as some of the bad guys and things are gritty and the subject matter is dark. I also adore reading about other cultures where you are so enmeshed that it feels a little like culture shock when yo More...
Allow me to preface by saying that I love good crime noir book- one where the heroes are as flawed as some of the bad guys and things are gritty and the subject matter is dark. I also adore reading about other cultures where you are so enmeshed that it feels a little like culture shock when yo More...
Mar 04, 2011
Deb
rated it:
Police detective Sonchai and his partner Pichai are following a black American ex-marine. They catch up to him just after he has been killed by an assortment of drug crazed snakes--one of which also kills Pichai. Thus begins Thai detective Sonchai's first adventure as a virtuous Buddhist cop who must uncover the truth and seek justice. This is complicated by his view of Karma and his visions into past lives, which both explains and complicates the present. Sonchai teams us with a female inve
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Nov 11, 2011
Darrell
rated it:
The older I get, the more prone I am to borrowing from the library before I put down money for a book. I was especially hesitant to pick up John Burdett's Bangkok 8, fearing it would be the lurid and grotty sort of “Neon Noir” that British male authors seem to revel in: a cascade of depravity concluding with collapse. (James Ellroy, who writes the sort of novels I most dislike, calls this book, "The last, most compelling word in thrillers.") But the premise held appeal: a murder to sol
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Sep 29, 2011
Patrick
rated it:
Bangkok 8 by John Burdett is a book I devoured in a couple of days. It is a compelling mystery with excellent use of local culture and customs to add color to the novel. It is literally overflowing with lurid and accurate details of Bangkok. He also manages to convey a lot about Buddhism. I liked how he used a radio call in talk show with a sociologist host to make observations and analysis about Thai culture and societal problems, rather than giving long speeches to characters. I like the fact
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Jul 30, 2011
Bangkok. To those in the know, it's a pleasure destination bar none. You can find pretty much find any vice you prefer without much trouble, and without many consequences if you know the right people to bribe. Of course many pleasure seekers and recidivists are drawn to Bangkok as a result, and some lose their lives. Enter Detective Sonchai Jeetlecheep of the Royal Thai Police force. Perhaps the only cop in the entire country of Thailand that refuses to take a bribe, his partner is killed
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Jun 20, 2011
Sheila
rated it:
East meets West, everyday violence meets a touch of the paranormal (or at least the obscure), and good solid detective work is underscored with Buddhism, drugs and alcohol to create a fascinating feast in John Burdett’s Bangkok 8.
My husband really enjoyed this novel and recommended I should read it—a good recommendation, since I enjoyed it. My husband likes things logical, and the mystery at the heart of this novel is very logically resolved, though neither of us managed to guess the c More...
My husband really enjoyed this novel and recommended I should read it—a good recommendation, since I enjoyed it. My husband likes things logical, and the mystery at the heart of this novel is very logically resolved, though neither of us managed to guess the c More...
Apr 09, 2011
Sean
rated it:
The police detective and brothel owner (with his mother) Sanchai Jitpleecheep hates to accept money from the foreign sex tourists who use his country as whorehouse. But Sanchai says of his country, Thailand and his city, Bangkok, "Krung Thep, means City of Angles, but we are happy to call it Bangkok if it helps to separate a farang from his money." Farang is a derisive term for a westerner.
The book is told with this sarcastic, and self-loathing, tone. It's refreshing in a hard- More...
The book is told with this sarcastic, and self-loathing, tone. It's refreshing in a hard- More...
Mar 27, 2011
Diane
rated it:
Bangkok 8, by John Burdett, takes the reader deep into of Bangkok, along with narrator-cop Sonjai Jitpleecheep. Some have compared the book, one of a series, to Elmore Leonard. I think of it as being closer to Tony Hillerman's forays into the Navajo culture of the Southwestern United States. We are thrust into a culture familiar in so many ways, yet far removed from anything most of us have ever known. In fact, I had to ask myself halfway through the novel if anyone in Thailand led a "norma
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Sep 16, 2010
Matt
rated it:
This book was an awful lot better than expected, and I say that thinking that the last hundred pages, the last third or so, were pretty duff.... This is the semi-famous millenial crime thriller set in Bangkok, with a Buddhist detective who's also the son of a retired prostitute. The set-up, played like that, sounds kind of gimmicky, but what works in this book is how bred into the series that lifestyle, or maybe way of thinking, is integrated into the novel. There are passages that really are ju
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Jul 27, 2010
Rowland
rated it:
A flight from Indonesia to Bangkok via Singapore is probably about the perfect time and place to pick up the murder mystery. Lucky me. The story is set in the streets of present day Bangkok. It offers the reader a compelling and stark view of this city of over 10 million inhabitants from an insider's point of view. The story line seemed less important than the confrontation between the western mind and the Buddhist Asian mind. Burrdett does a grand job examining western precepts from the perspec
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Oct 23, 2009
Amber
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Apr 09, 2009
LJ
rated it:
First Sentence: The African American marine in the gray Mercedes will soon die of bites from Naja siamensis, but we don’t know that yet, Pichai and I (the future is impenetrable, says the Buddha).
Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep is the son of a Thai retired prostitute and a white man, whose identity his mother won’t divulge. Sonchai and Pichai, his partner, best friend and soul-mate, have been assigned to follow a U.S. Marine sergeant. In tailing the sergeant, they lose him for a bi More...
Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep is the son of a Thai retired prostitute and a white man, whose identity his mother won’t divulge. Sonchai and Pichai, his partner, best friend and soul-mate, have been assigned to follow a U.S. Marine sergeant. In tailing the sergeant, they lose him for a bi More...
Sep 26, 2010
Clyde
rated it:
I've read 5 Burdett novels and have come to believe that the head cops and military brass in Thailand are all corrupt, as they are in Mexico where the "War On Drugs", fueled by millions of our American taxpayers'
dollars is one big joke. I've had too many negative experiences in Mexico to believe that many of the officials in that country are honest.
Sometimes Burdett stretches the truth as in one of his novels he refers to the "747's that crashed into the World Trade More...
dollars is one big joke. I've had too many negative experiences in Mexico to believe that many of the officials in that country are honest.
Sometimes Burdett stretches the truth as in one of his novels he refers to the "747's that crashed into the World Trade More...
Jan 03, 2012
Lance
rated it:
Sonchai Jitpleecheep, Burdett's protagonist in this and the following books, is unique among the hordes of police detectives occupying the mystery-novel shelves: he's a half-Thai former Buddhist monk-in-training now awash in the very secular, wide-open chaos that is modern Bangkok. Needless to say, he has a far different worldview than, say, Harry Bosch or Elvis Cole, which he explores in many asides as he threads his way though corruption, influence-peddling, art smuggling, the flesh trade and
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Mar 30, 2011
Tarik
rated it:
This is one of my favorite mysteries of all time, and definitely the best of Burdett's "Bangkok" series. Its a good combination of character development, atmosphere, story, and most importantly - humor - that all together reflect a kind of funky modern noir that is well fit for a Bangkok detective story. Burdett clearly "knows" Bangkok and local culture, at least from the perspective of his western reading audience. The characters are funny and likeable, especially Burdett's
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Aug 22, 2010
Patrick
rated it:
What the hell - Bangkok on a high-grade meth binge? Buddhist cops? Reincarnation as a form of interrogation? John Burdett's Bangkok 8 is over the top. His protagonist, Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep, is half Caucasian American, half Thai, full Buddhist, speaks fluent English and has refined tastes in clothing and perfume. His mom is a retired B-girl hooker. His dad is unknown. His boss is a ruthless gangster and Jitpleecheep is the only cop on the entire Thai police force not on the take. But hi
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Mar 06, 2010
Ardita
rated it:
Reading the book towards the end of my stay here gave me sort of a balanced view of the notorious Bangkok, an exotic place so loved and cherished by its visitors despite its extreme mixes of elements.
Coming from one of Thailand's neighboring country whose capital shares the same number of population with Bangkok didn't make me feel the contrasting difference that most of its visitors from occidental origin. However, you really have to wait and witness Bangkok's other face after the sun More...
Coming from one of Thailand's neighboring country whose capital shares the same number of population with Bangkok didn't make me feel the contrasting difference that most of its visitors from occidental origin. However, you really have to wait and witness Bangkok's other face after the sun More...
Jan 26, 2010
Tony
rated it:
Burdett originally called the book Krung Thep, which is the Thai name for the city. Deemed to obscure by the publisher, the title was changed to Bangkok 8 for the police district where much of the action takes place. Our hero Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheap explains on page 7:
A farang is a westerner, and Sonchai is half-farang himself, the father he never More...
"Krung Thep means City of Angels, but we are happy to call it Bangkok if it helps to separate a farang from his money."
A farang is a westerner, and Sonchai is half-farang himself, the father he never More...
Jul 11, 2010
John
rated it:
This works better thinking of it just as a novel than as a mystery. The author does a nice job with his interesting viewpoint character (Buddhist police detective, a flawed hero but the last honest man in a dishonest world, etc. etc.) and contrasting Sonchai's world-view with that of the Americans around him. There is a ton of local color in this book.
The story kicks off with a great scene in the opening pages of the novel; a parked car with dozens of snakes writhing over a dead bo More...
The story kicks off with a great scene in the opening pages of the novel; a parked car with dozens of snakes writhing over a dead bo More...
Jan 04, 2009
Christina
rated it:
I've been trying to find this book for years. When it first came out, I devoured it in one night, then gave it to my mother.
About three years ago, I started trying to remember the title so I could read it again. I couldn't remember the author, I couldn't remember the title. The clues I had to go on were the number 8, a snake, and a hot pink cover.
While searching for a book for my mom for Christmas this year, I treated myself to a morning at my favorite bookstore, Kramerb More...
About three years ago, I started trying to remember the title so I could read it again. I couldn't remember the author, I couldn't remember the title. The clues I had to go on were the number 8, a snake, and a hot pink cover.
While searching for a book for my mom for Christmas this year, I treated myself to a morning at my favorite bookstore, Kramerb More...
Mar 28, 2010
Jim
rated it:
4 of 5 stars for the novel Bangkok 8 by John Burdett. The story is set in modern day Thailand and follows a local police detective (self-claimed to be the only copy not-on-the-take left in Thailand). The story opens with a US Marine killed inside his car by alot of snakes. In addition to a large boa there are many deadly snakes. Who would kill this man and why with snakes? That is what we explore. The book digs into the deep dark side of Thailand's sex and drug scene. A super-rich American becom
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Jan 24, 2008
Tomi-Ann
rated it:
Very fun read. Hard boiled Buddhist detective? Think that's an oxymoron? Not for Sonchai Jitplejeep, son of a Thai prostitute and American GI. I'm psyched to read the next installment. This story has all kinds of crazy elements: prostitution, transsexualism, snakes, jade, the Khmer Rouge, and corruption. And in the midst of it all, Sonchai meditates.
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