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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/706011.Bangkok_8_A_Novel?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Bangkok 8: A Novel" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177459916m/706011.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/706011.Bangkok_8_A_Novel?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Bangkok 8: A Novel</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/30860.John_Burdett">John Burdett</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3719535?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 4 of 5 stars<br/>I am not usually a fan of detective stories, so I was a little bit skeptical when a professor of mine recommended this book to me before my trip to Southeast Asia. I did not get around to reading it until I was on the flight back from Bangkok, but I think that I appreciated the story all the more after falling in love with that city.
<br/>Burdett manages to both intermix and transcend genres. This work is at once a mystery, a thriller, a tongue-in-cheek British-influenced comedy, and a fantasy glued together with Buddhism and Thai culture. He portrays both Buddhism and Thai culture openly, honestly, and accurately and yet in a way that the Western reader can relate to.
<br/>The characters in this story, especially Sonchai Jitpleecheep, are well developed and textured. Burdett's understanding of the interplay between the Western and Eastern worlds in Bangkok is excellent, as is his understanding of the place bribery and corruption has in Southeast Asia. The mystery is unique with a surprising ending. I can't say enough good things about this work. I highly recommend it for everyone who enjoys a fun read that is much more than the standard mystery/thriller fluff.
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/232642?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Amy's review
rating:

bookshelves: readsummer2007
recommended for: Asian buffs who appreciate a wry outlook on life.
status: Read in June, 2007 — I have a copy to sell/swap

I am not usually a fan of detective stories, so I was a little bit skeptical when a professor of mine recommended this book to me before my trip to Southeast Asia. I did not get around to reading it until I was on the flight back from Bangkok, but I think that I appreciated the story all the more after falling in love with that city.
Burdett manages to both intermix and transcend genres. This work is at once a mystery, a thriller, a tongue-in-cheek British-influenced comedy, and a fantasy glued together with Buddhism and Thai culture. He portrays both Buddhism and Thai culture openly, honestly, and accurately and yet in a way that the Western reader can relate to.
The characters in this story, especially Sonchai Jitpleecheep, are well developed and textured. Burdett's understanding of the interplay between the Western and Eastern worlds in Bangkok is excellent, as is his understanding of the place bribery and corruption has in Southeast Asia. The mystery is unique with a surprising e...more

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