Laos, 1978: Dr. Siri Paiboun, a 72-year-old medical doctor, has unwillingly been appointed the national coroner of the new socialist Laos. His lab is underfunded, his boss is incompetent, and his support staff is quirky, to say the least. But Siri’s sense of humor gets him through his often frustrating days. When the body of the wife of a prominent politician comes through his morgue, Siri … Siri has reason to suspect the woman has been murdered. To get to the truth, Siri and his team face government secrets, spying neighbors, victim hauntings, Hmong shamans, botched romances, and other deadly dangers. Somehow, Siri must figure out a way to balance the will of the party and the will of the dead.
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Many of us live in the world of CSI, Bones and other TV shows about forensic scientists who can solve the most obscure of crimes with the tiniest clues and a lab full of high-tech gear. Forget all that.
This coroner doesn’t really want the job, has almost no gear in what passes for his lab and yet he struggles to solve crimes as best he can.
Oh and by the way, the time is 1976 and the place is Laos. In addition to being a whodunit, this story is also a glimpse of a time and place with which most of us are not familiar.
This was a wonderful read. I learned a little of the country at the time of communist take over (political issues not surprising) but the characters of the doctor, his unusual assistants and the police man from another country kept me smiling thru the book. And it had a proper and great ending.
I read this while traveling in Laos. Very atmospheric with memorable characters.
Opened my eyes to a part of the world I knew nothing about. Very different but still a good mystery.
Loved the book. Great look into Post war Laos and life in a communist country.
Written of Vietnam, following a doctor turned coroner through solving what happen to the bodies brought in. Fowl play and his ingenuity to circumvent the powers that be to get to find answers. It has been a very long time that I have so enjoyed a book. My word of advise get it read it enjoy it . GREAT BOOK!
Interesting view of a milieu I know nothing about.
I enjoyed this book very much. I will definitely read more books by this author about this main character.
The setting and the characters made me want to read about this horrible time . It recreated that time in history , gave me new insights, and was so engrossing for a difficult time .
Great mystery and the start of a great series.
f you like your crime with a hint of magical realism and a good dash of humour, these will be for you! Set in Laos in the 1970s (a place I knew hang all about), they feature Dr. Siri Paboum and his staff – he is a reluctant octogenarian coroner with odd links to the spirit world. The setting is strong (beautiful country, crumbling infrastructure, political uncertainty), the characters stronger (including his wonderful nurse, Dtui, who faces all the troubles of her life with stoical humour). These are books I have serious difficulty putting down – I usually read them in one go!
A fantastic start to an engaging series. Highly recommended!
An excellent, quirky mystery, as quirky as the country in which it is set. I love Laos and I really like this book.
I read this book in 4 days. It was an easy read and a solid 4 stars. Dr. Siri Paiboun is a doctor who has been appointed the chief (and only) coroner of Laos. He is 72 and had planned to retire, but was not given a choice. He has 2 assistants, 1 of whom has Down’s Syndrome. He has almost no equipment–an ancient microscope, a few books and no way to test for poison. Despite all these handicaps, he manages to solve several murders and make some nasty enemies at the same time. He has to deal with Laotian communist politics and corruption while finding ingenious ways to solve his cases.
I liked the writing. I liked the characters.Though not a fantasy, it did take me to a different world than I enjoy. It kept my interest and made me like the characters
Exotic setting, fascinating characters
This is a great story/series. I have never lived in a communist, war torn , impoverished country. The very idea makes it hard for me to breath. The good the bad and certainly the ugly. I thought it was amazing that he just excepted the environment and had devoted friends as he was devoted to his co-workers and shop keepers. Loved the mysterus.
Love the whole series.
Its style is very different, intriguing, sometimes I was not sure if I ‘got’ the significance of something that happened. I would definitely read another book by this author
This whole series is marvelous. To make a hero out of a dedicated communist revolutionary who is the national coroner of Laos! Masterful!