Garden of Hell

The Father Ananda Mysteries #2

by Nick Wilgus

All is not as it seems when Father Ananda is summoned by the Buddhist authorities in Bangkok to investigate an odd case of suspected suicide in a rural temple in Sara Buri. A young man's gruesome death in a crocodile pit at the temple's Buddhist theme park sets off an inexplicable chain of events that places Ananda and his novice Jak in grave danger. Determined to expose the secrets hidden in this famous monastic community, Ananda fights powerful vested interests in this second episode of the Father Ananda mystery series.

191 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2006

About the author

I sold my first short story to The Horror Show Magazine at the age of seventeen and I've been writing ever since. An award-winning movie was based on my first novel, MINDFULNESS AND MURDER, and I was also nominated for a Lambda Award.

A former newspaper editor and author of more than a dozen novels and two screenplays, I currently live in Tupelo, Mississippi right down the street from the house where Elvis grew up..

Reviews

[Tom Vater · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent second installment in the Father Ananda series of books by American writer Nick Wilgus.
Father Ananda, a former police officer turned Buddhist monk and his young handicapped sidekick Jak are called to a monastery north of Bangkok to investigate the alleged suicide of a nun. The nun is believed to have thrown herself into a crocodile enclosure after getting pregnant. The crocodiles are part of a so called Garden of Hell, a popular Buddhist theme park depicting the fate of sinners. Soon after they get there, the nun's brother, a monk is also found dead. As Father Ananda uncovers evidence of foul play, gangsterism and human trafficking at the temple while trying to contain his sidekicks depressions relating to his disabilities, the forces of darkness soon close in on the investigating couple and it takes some desperate sleuthing to get to the bottom of the case.
Author Wilgus mixes classic whodunit with simple but insightful explanations of Buddhist tenets that never distract from the fast moving plot.

[Michael]

This book is not at all what it sounds like from the title, though there is a Garden of Hell in the book. Father Ananda, the main character, is a Thai Buddhist monk who solves mysteries. As always I am interested in Asian culture. I really want to go visit.