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Dr. Siri Paiboun #3
Disco for the Departed
Dr. Siri Paiboun, reluctant national coroner of the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos, is summoned to a remote location in the mountains of Huaphan Province, where for years the leaders of the current government had hidden out in caves, waiting to assume power. Now, as a major celebration of the new regime is scheduled to take place, an arm is found protruding from the concrete walk that had been laid from the President’s former cave hideout to his new house beneath the cliffs. Dr. Siri is ordered to supervise the disinterment of the body attached to the arm, identify the corpse and discover how he died.
The autopsy provides some surprises but it is his gift as a shaman that enables the seventy-two-year old doctor to discover why the victim was buried alive and, eventually, the identity of his killer.
The autopsy provides some surprises but it is his gift as a shaman that enables the seventy-two-year old doctor to discover why the victim was buried alive and, eventually, the identity of his killer.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
About the author
Colin Cotterill
66 books995 followersColin Cotterill was born in London and trained as a teacher and set off on a world tour that didn't ever come to an end. He worked as a Physical Education instructor in Israel, a primary school teacher in Australia, a counselor for educationally handicapped adults in the US, and a university lecturer in Japan. But the greater part of his latter years has been spent in Southeast Asia. Colin has taught and trained teachers in Thailand and on the Burmese border. He spent several years in Laos, initially with UNESCO and wrote and produced a forty-programme language teaching series; English By Accident, for Thai national television.
Ten years ago, Colin became involved in child protection in the region and set up an NGO in Phuket which he ran for the first two years. After two more years of study in child abuse issues, and one more stint in Phuket, he moved on to ECPAT, an international organization combating child prostitution and pornography. He established their training program for caregivers.
All the while, Colin continued with his two other passions; cartooning and writing. He contributed regular columns for the Bangkok Post but had little time to write. It wasn't until his work with trafficked children that he found himself sufficiently stimulated to put together his first novel, The Night Bastard (Suk's Editions. 2000).
The reaction to that first attempt was so positive that Colin decided to take time off and write full-time. Since October 2001 he has written nine more novels. Two of these are child-protection based: Evil in the Land Without (Asia Books December 03), and Pool and Its Role in Asian Communism (Asia Books, Dec 05). These were followed by The Coroner’s Lunch (Soho Press. Dec 04), Thirty Three Teeth (Aug 05), Disco for the Departed (Aug 06), Anarchy and Old Dogs (Aug 07), and Curse of the Pogo Stick (Aug 08), The Merry Misogynist (Aug 09), Love Songs from a Shallow Grave (Aug 10) these last seven are set in Laos in the 1970’s.
On June 15, 2009 Colin Cotterill received the Crime Writers' Association Dagger in the Library award for being "the author of crime fiction whose work is currently giving the greatest enjoyment to library users".
When the Lao books gained in popularity, Cotterill set up a project to send books to Lao children and sponsor trainee teachers. The Books for Laos programme elicits support from fans of the books and is administered purely on a voluntary basis.
Since 1990, Colin has been a regular cartoonist for national publications. A Thai language translation of his cartoon scrapbook, Ethel and Joan Go to Phuket (Matichon May 04) and weekly social cartoons in the Nation newspaper, set him back onto the cartoon trail in 2004. On 4 April 2004, an illustrated bilingual column ‘cycle logical’ was launched in Matichon’s popular weekly news magazine. These have been published in book form.
Colin is married and lives in a fishing community on the Gulf of Siam with his wife, Kyoko, and ever-expanding pack of very annoying dogs.
Ten years ago, Colin became involved in child protection in the region and set up an NGO in Phuket which he ran for the first two years. After two more years of study in child abuse issues, and one more stint in Phuket, he moved on to ECPAT, an international organization combating child prostitution and pornography. He established their training program for caregivers.
All the while, Colin continued with his two other passions; cartooning and writing. He contributed regular columns for the Bangkok Post but had little time to write. It wasn't until his work with trafficked children that he found himself sufficiently stimulated to put together his first novel, The Night Bastard (Suk's Editions. 2000).
The reaction to that first attempt was so positive that Colin decided to take time off and write full-time. Since October 2001 he has written nine more novels. Two of these are child-protection based: Evil in the Land Without (Asia Books December 03), and Pool and Its Role in Asian Communism (Asia Books, Dec 05). These were followed by The Coroner’s Lunch (Soho Press. Dec 04), Thirty Three Teeth (Aug 05), Disco for the Departed (Aug 06), Anarchy and Old Dogs (Aug 07), and Curse of the Pogo Stick (Aug 08), The Merry Misogynist (Aug 09), Love Songs from a Shallow Grave (Aug 10) these last seven are set in Laos in the 1970’s.
On June 15, 2009 Colin Cotterill received the Crime Writers' Association Dagger in the Library award for being "the author of crime fiction whose work is currently giving the greatest enjoyment to library users".
When the Lao books gained in popularity, Cotterill set up a project to send books to Lao children and sponsor trainee teachers. The Books for Laos programme elicits support from fans of the books and is administered purely on a voluntary basis.
Since 1990, Colin has been a regular cartoonist for national publications. A Thai language translation of his cartoon scrapbook, Ethel and Joan Go to Phuket (Matichon May 04) and weekly social cartoons in the Nation newspaper, set him back onto the cartoon trail in 2004. On 4 April 2004, an illustrated bilingual column ‘cycle logical’ was launched in Matichon’s popular weekly news magazine. These have been published in book form.
Colin is married and lives in a fishing community on the Gulf of Siam with his wife, Kyoko, and ever-expanding pack of very annoying dogs.
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July 21, 2022
I enjoy this series and had to get this book on inter-library loan. This is book 3 in the series and it can be read as a stand alone, but the series is more enjoyable if read in order. In this book, Dr. Siri Paiboun, the National Coroner of Laos(and the only coroner in Laos), is sent to the rural Northeast of Laos to examine a body recently uncovered by a boulder crashing into a cement walkway.
He brings his assistant, Nurse Dtui with him. She wants to become a doctor, and he is doing all he can to help her achieve her goal.
Dtui and Siri discover more bodies and gradually discover what happened with the help of the spirit world. Siri is in regular contact with the spirit world, part of a long tradition in Laos. Siri also manages to deal with unpleasant superiors, successfully outmaneuvering several of them.
I rate this book a solid 4 stars.
The interesting insights into Laos society and quirky characters keep bringing me back to this series.
He brings his assistant, Nurse Dtui with him. She wants to become a doctor, and he is doing all he can to help her achieve her goal.
Dtui and Siri discover more bodies and gradually discover what happened with the help of the spirit world. Siri is in regular contact with the spirit world, part of a long tradition in Laos. Siri also manages to deal with unpleasant superiors, successfully outmaneuvering several of them.
I rate this book a solid 4 stars.
The interesting insights into Laos society and quirky characters keep bringing me back to this series.
August 3, 2014
Rating: 3.75* of five
The Publisher Says: Dr. Siri Paiboun, reluctant national coroner of the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos, is summoned to a remote location in the mountains of Huaphan Province, where for years the leaders of the current government had hidden out in caves, waiting to assume power. Now, as a major celebration of the new regime is scheduled to take place, an arm is found protruding from the concrete walk that had been laid from the President’s former cave hideout to his new house beneath the cliffs. Dr. Siri is ordered to supervise the disinterment of the body attached to the arm, identify the corpse and discover how he died.
The autopsy provides some surprises but it is his gift as a shaman that enables the seventy-two-year old doctor to discover why the victim was buried alive and, eventually, the identity of his killer.
My Review: Comrade Doctor Siri, the only coroner in the newly “liberated” Communist regime of Laos, returns to the northeastern jungle caves where he and his Pathet Lao insurgent comrades once fought the Royalists and the Americans for control of Laos. His purpose: Find out, in the ten days before a celebratory concert takes place there, whose body has been discovered in the newly laid cement walkway leading to the president's former hideout. Formidable Nurse Dtui in tow, Dr. Siri uncovers a series of awful, painful truths about families, friends, and the departed but not gone spirits of those who (willingly or not) gave their lives for the cause of communism.
Along the way, Dr. Siri encounters an old Cuban friend from insurgency days, a host of disco-dancing spirits, a Lao cadre with the personality of a rock and the temerity to file a request for permission to woo before approaching Dtui to ask for her hand in marriage, becomes the living host of a different, dead Cuban, and unknowingly loses his eidetically gifted, Down's syndrome afflicted morgue assistant Mr. Geung, who contracts dengue fever (often fatal) in an epic walk across most of Laos to get back from his politically motivated exile from Vientiane's—indeed Laos's—only morgue at the hands of insufferable idiot politico Judge Haeng.
When triumphant Siri and Dtui host an official delegation from Vietnam, their delightful antics offer an ending to this entry in the long-running series that should, if you're at all a fan of the comedy of cosmic justice, have you chortling with appreciative schadenfreude for hours.
In any series, there comes a point when things either get stale or take some sort of turn that's got long-range implications and bends the course of future events. The latter point has been reached in this series, here in the third book, and there are some characters not present who would ordinarily be on-scene. Comrade Inspector Phosy is completely absent; Comrade Minister Civilai is only a token presence; but they will be back. Won't they? I haven't read the next book yet, so I can't be sure, but they should...and Dtui, bless her cotton socks, not only gets a marriage proposal (rejected) but other life-changing news (good) that will make the rest of the series look a little different.
Series mysteries appeal to me for these reasons, these ongoing characters having ongoing lives that change the way things transpire in the books. I am, I suppose, the soap-opera-watching sort of personality. I like getting to know the characters in my entertainments over time, and watching them develop as logically as fictional characters can. Which is often a great deal more logically than corporeal characters can, or at least do, develop. And of course there is the orderliness of bad people being punished for doing bad things aspect of mysteries that's very appealing. It happens so seldom in life.
Cotterill's Laos has the virtue of being completely unfamiliar to me, and therefore adding a (possibly spurious) sense of learning something about an alien life-way. I found the expanded knowledge of Laotian communitarian culture very interesting in this book. The moments that Mr. Geung, walking across most of his country, spends in the care of his countrymen are charming to me, revealing a place and a time that valued humanness and kindness over and above any -ism or credo. Cotterill is at pains to point out that the cities might already be changing, but the populace still valued and followed the ancient principles of hospitality and generosity to others.
A deeply involving series, an interesting entry in it, and a story that both wraps itself up sensibly and satisfyingly as well as sets up the changes and events of the next entry...what more can a mystery addict ask for?
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The Publisher Says: Dr. Siri Paiboun, reluctant national coroner of the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos, is summoned to a remote location in the mountains of Huaphan Province, where for years the leaders of the current government had hidden out in caves, waiting to assume power. Now, as a major celebration of the new regime is scheduled to take place, an arm is found protruding from the concrete walk that had been laid from the President’s former cave hideout to his new house beneath the cliffs. Dr. Siri is ordered to supervise the disinterment of the body attached to the arm, identify the corpse and discover how he died.
The autopsy provides some surprises but it is his gift as a shaman that enables the seventy-two-year old doctor to discover why the victim was buried alive and, eventually, the identity of his killer.
My Review: Comrade Doctor Siri, the only coroner in the newly “liberated” Communist regime of Laos, returns to the northeastern jungle caves where he and his Pathet Lao insurgent comrades once fought the Royalists and the Americans for control of Laos. His purpose: Find out, in the ten days before a celebratory concert takes place there, whose body has been discovered in the newly laid cement walkway leading to the president's former hideout. Formidable Nurse Dtui in tow, Dr. Siri uncovers a series of awful, painful truths about families, friends, and the departed but not gone spirits of those who (willingly or not) gave their lives for the cause of communism.
Along the way, Dr. Siri encounters an old Cuban friend from insurgency days, a host of disco-dancing spirits, a Lao cadre with the personality of a rock and the temerity to file a request for permission to woo before approaching Dtui to ask for her hand in marriage, becomes the living host of a different, dead Cuban, and unknowingly loses his eidetically gifted, Down's syndrome afflicted morgue assistant Mr. Geung, who contracts dengue fever (often fatal) in an epic walk across most of Laos to get back from his politically motivated exile from Vientiane's—indeed Laos's—only morgue at the hands of insufferable idiot politico Judge Haeng.
When triumphant Siri and Dtui host an official delegation from Vietnam, their delightful antics offer an ending to this entry in the long-running series that should, if you're at all a fan of the comedy of cosmic justice, have you chortling with appreciative schadenfreude for hours.
In any series, there comes a point when things either get stale or take some sort of turn that's got long-range implications and bends the course of future events. The latter point has been reached in this series, here in the third book, and there are some characters not present who would ordinarily be on-scene. Comrade Inspector Phosy is completely absent; Comrade Minister Civilai is only a token presence; but they will be back. Won't they? I haven't read the next book yet, so I can't be sure, but they should...and Dtui, bless her cotton socks, not only gets a marriage proposal (rejected) but other life-changing news (good) that will make the rest of the series look a little different.
Series mysteries appeal to me for these reasons, these ongoing characters having ongoing lives that change the way things transpire in the books. I am, I suppose, the soap-opera-watching sort of personality. I like getting to know the characters in my entertainments over time, and watching them develop as logically as fictional characters can. Which is often a great deal more logically than corporeal characters can, or at least do, develop. And of course there is the orderliness of bad people being punished for doing bad things aspect of mysteries that's very appealing. It happens so seldom in life.
Cotterill's Laos has the virtue of being completely unfamiliar to me, and therefore adding a (possibly spurious) sense of learning something about an alien life-way. I found the expanded knowledge of Laotian communitarian culture very interesting in this book. The moments that Mr. Geung, walking across most of his country, spends in the care of his countrymen are charming to me, revealing a place and a time that valued humanness and kindness over and above any -ism or credo. Cotterill is at pains to point out that the cities might already be changing, but the populace still valued and followed the ancient principles of hospitality and generosity to others.
A deeply involving series, an interesting entry in it, and a story that both wraps itself up sensibly and satisfyingly as well as sets up the changes and events of the next entry...what more can a mystery addict ask for?
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
March 29, 2012
Like the little girl Panoy, I too wish I could reach up and tug on Dr. Siri's fluffy white eyebrows, hopefully convince him to tell a story or two about the spirits and his coroner's cases. He's a delightful old man who is learning to appreciate new talents, including a spirit-provided gift of rhythm in his step. Disco is a treasure of an adult tale, with a lush foreign setting, an intriguing mystery, a fine balance of both darkness and humor, and touches of spirits and black magic.
Dr. Siri and Dtui are shipped off to rural Huaphan Province in northern Laos by Judge Haeng and find themselves staying at state "Guesthouse" Number One. At Comrade Lit's requests, they investigate the mysterious surfacing of a mummified arm near the President's house. The Huaphan Provine was the seat of the current Communist government during the revolution, and both the reader and Dtui learn more about the rebellion and Dr. Siri's history with the local hospital. Narrative is back to focusing on Dr. Siri, although we also spend some time following Gueng--quite literally, as he makes a tremendous journey across rural Laos.
The mystery and the mystical elements are both well done. I happen to love the way the spirits give Dr. Siri special insight, but this time he combines investigative work with his ambiguous dreams. Scattered throughout, of course, is commentary on the Communist regime, the sort of deep ambivalence that comes from the perspective of a long and thoughtful life. Following Geung also gives the opportunity to learn more about the rural Lao, and especially coping post-revolution. It is fascinating reading about the caves the rebel army used, and their strategies for staying hidden from American planes. One of the remarkable achievements of the series is how it is able to give the reader insight into fighting a war that indirectly involved Americans, and yet not vilify either side.
I enjoy Cotterill's use of language, especially his culturally contextual comparisons. Take, for instance, the morning Mr. Geung woke "wrapped in a canvas tarpaulin like pork in a Chinese spring roll," which brings a touch of the comedic with some unusual imagery. Actually, food analogies seem to frequently occur around Mr. Geung, who "was no scarier than a Chinese dumpling." Dtui's situation "sat heavily on her mind like the carcass of an overweight sloth." Then there's the throwaway lines of perfect ironic construction, such as the "two-story building designed by Vietnamese rectangulists," creating marvel at his ability to convey so many implications with so few words. He also brings multiple layers of emotion to the story: "Dtui countered with a typical Lao Band-Aid smile that covered no end of emotional cuts and bruises" and "Just like that, the village had painlessly filled the gap... like white blood corpuscles healing a wound and leaving no scar."
An excellent series. I'm excited to have the next waiting on my shelf.
Dr. Siri and Dtui are shipped off to rural Huaphan Province in northern Laos by Judge Haeng and find themselves staying at state "Guesthouse" Number One. At Comrade Lit's requests, they investigate the mysterious surfacing of a mummified arm near the President's house. The Huaphan Provine was the seat of the current Communist government during the revolution, and both the reader and Dtui learn more about the rebellion and Dr. Siri's history with the local hospital. Narrative is back to focusing on Dr. Siri, although we also spend some time following Gueng--quite literally, as he makes a tremendous journey across rural Laos.
The mystery and the mystical elements are both well done. I happen to love the way the spirits give Dr. Siri special insight, but this time he combines investigative work with his ambiguous dreams. Scattered throughout, of course, is commentary on the Communist regime, the sort of deep ambivalence that comes from the perspective of a long and thoughtful life. Following Geung also gives the opportunity to learn more about the rural Lao, and especially coping post-revolution. It is fascinating reading about the caves the rebel army used, and their strategies for staying hidden from American planes. One of the remarkable achievements of the series is how it is able to give the reader insight into fighting a war that indirectly involved Americans, and yet not vilify either side.
I enjoy Cotterill's use of language, especially his culturally contextual comparisons. Take, for instance, the morning Mr. Geung woke "wrapped in a canvas tarpaulin like pork in a Chinese spring roll," which brings a touch of the comedic with some unusual imagery. Actually, food analogies seem to frequently occur around Mr. Geung, who "was no scarier than a Chinese dumpling." Dtui's situation "sat heavily on her mind like the carcass of an overweight sloth." Then there's the throwaway lines of perfect ironic construction, such as the "two-story building designed by Vietnamese rectangulists," creating marvel at his ability to convey so many implications with so few words. He also brings multiple layers of emotion to the story: "Dtui countered with a typical Lao Band-Aid smile that covered no end of emotional cuts and bruises" and "Just like that, the village had painlessly filled the gap... like white blood corpuscles healing a wound and leaving no scar."
An excellent series. I'm excited to have the next waiting on my shelf.
July 5, 2016
Third time's a charm. I enjoyed the initial two books in the Dr. Siri series, but, with Disco for the Departed, Cotterill gives us a superb read, in every way. It's not easy to explain what makes '70s Laos with a 71-year old coroner so mesmerizing. Mesmerizing it is, though - whether reading about the Vietnamese building roads that end twenty yards away from where Russian bridges are placed, because the Vietnamese refuse to redesign or re-place the roads once they realize they won't connect to each bridge; or the re-education of former-Royalist sympathizers (reminiscent of the lighter moments of Orphan's Son); or nurse Dtui's efforts to get admitted to medical school in the then-USSR; or Dr. Siri's accommodation of spirits of dead men inhabiting, then leaving, his body - to name a few memorable moments.
Cotterill deftly weaves plot 1: the story of Dr. Siri - trained physicial, now un-trained (and without any supplies or lab equipment) coroner, wishing fervently to be retired - and his companion, Dtui, called away from Vientiane and endeavoring to determine who murdered a man found in concrete near the President's former cave hideout, with plot 2: Gueng - Dr. Siri's morgue assistant who happens to have Downs' syndrome - managing to escape from a work camp 130 or so miles away from Vientiane and spending the novel endeavoring to return to the morgue and live up to his commitment to Dr. Siri to watch over the morgue in Siri's absence. Gueng's on-foot trip is harrowing, grueling, tense and -- in my view -- he gets the rock-star attention from the reader that he deserves.
In Disco for the Departed, Cotterill makes Dtui and Geung not just companions of Siri, but fully fleshed out characters in their own right. And they are wonderful. Add to that the author's evident love of Laos, and his appreciation of the spiritual beliefs of the Laotians as well as Cuban characters inhabiting the novel, and you have a fine, fine ride of a book.
Cotterill deftly weaves plot 1: the story of Dr. Siri - trained physicial, now un-trained (and without any supplies or lab equipment) coroner, wishing fervently to be retired - and his companion, Dtui, called away from Vientiane and endeavoring to determine who murdered a man found in concrete near the President's former cave hideout, with plot 2: Gueng - Dr. Siri's morgue assistant who happens to have Downs' syndrome - managing to escape from a work camp 130 or so miles away from Vientiane and spending the novel endeavoring to return to the morgue and live up to his commitment to Dr. Siri to watch over the morgue in Siri's absence. Gueng's on-foot trip is harrowing, grueling, tense and -- in my view -- he gets the rock-star attention from the reader that he deserves.
In Disco for the Departed, Cotterill makes Dtui and Geung not just companions of Siri, but fully fleshed out characters in their own right. And they are wonderful. Add to that the author's evident love of Laos, and his appreciation of the spiritual beliefs of the Laotians as well as Cuban characters inhabiting the novel, and you have a fine, fine ride of a book.
May 5, 2023
There is nothing more glorious than the elation of an adventure, setting, and style that are made for us. The skilful Colin Cotterill shows what it was like to be ruled by communism. I was too little to watch the news in the 1980s but have not forgotten a grade 2 student telling me his family escaped a war. We taught him to read in English and I befriended his elder Sister. We got our first house a year afterwards but these Lao friends are unforgotten.
The personal origin of my first friends is the reason I was stunned to discover novels about Laos. What is more, they are not merely crafted as fiction but are in the genre of my heart, paranormal mysteries! I retort “Foo”! to any griping that the premise becomes more mystical as the series builds! This is what I live and look for! There are enough dry stories. Even better, for someone fed up about seeing nothing but historical fiction, 1980 is recent. Here are lovable, intelligent, and yet hilarious personages in the most original premise and atmosphere I have ever seen. I buy these books as soon as they are on sale and feel happy. I hope the grim postwar years truly did get brightened by treasures like Siri, Dtui, and Geung.
It startles me that “Disco For The Departed” 2006, is only their third story because I am so entrenched in their world. Opening this bright green cover felt as natural as riding a horse and delighting in every step. For sheer quality, rapt page turning attention, originality, cultural education, humour, intelligence, intriguing mysticism, advancement of characters in a beloved series, a happy ending, and a magnificently crafted mystery.... this is one of the easiest instances of five stars I have ever given.
The personal origin of my first friends is the reason I was stunned to discover novels about Laos. What is more, they are not merely crafted as fiction but are in the genre of my heart, paranormal mysteries! I retort “Foo”! to any griping that the premise becomes more mystical as the series builds! This is what I live and look for! There are enough dry stories. Even better, for someone fed up about seeing nothing but historical fiction, 1980 is recent. Here are lovable, intelligent, and yet hilarious personages in the most original premise and atmosphere I have ever seen. I buy these books as soon as they are on sale and feel happy. I hope the grim postwar years truly did get brightened by treasures like Siri, Dtui, and Geung.
It startles me that “Disco For The Departed” 2006, is only their third story because I am so entrenched in their world. Opening this bright green cover felt as natural as riding a horse and delighting in every step. For sheer quality, rapt page turning attention, originality, cultural education, humour, intelligence, intriguing mysticism, advancement of characters in a beloved series, a happy ending, and a magnificently crafted mystery.... this is one of the easiest instances of five stars I have ever given.
July 8, 2021
When you hear "Siri," you probably think Apple's digital assistant, but I think Dr. Siri Paiboun, Colin Cotterill's septuagenarian coroner, who solves mysteries in 1970's newly communist Laos.
He does so with the aid of his more than able nurse Dtui, his lab assistant with Down Syndrome, Geung, and the sometime interference of an ancient shaman with whom he is possessed.
The new Communist regime is on display in all its glorious corruption and ineptitude in this book, as Siri, actually pronounced "Seelee," is called to investigate what turns out to be three bodies buried under mysterious circumstances, and to get it done before a huge celebration marking the new spirit of friendship between Laos and Vietnam.
Throughout the books, Siri, a nominal member of the party, concentrates on just laying low and getting his job done. His wry sense of humor and attitude that he has seen just about everything already get him through situations that would defeat weaker men.
I listened to the audio book version, which I commend to you, as the Laotian names and words are pronounced in ways that are not obvious to western eyes and ears.
He does so with the aid of his more than able nurse Dtui, his lab assistant with Down Syndrome, Geung, and the sometime interference of an ancient shaman with whom he is possessed.
The new Communist regime is on display in all its glorious corruption and ineptitude in this book, as Siri, actually pronounced "Seelee," is called to investigate what turns out to be three bodies buried under mysterious circumstances, and to get it done before a huge celebration marking the new spirit of friendship between Laos and Vietnam.
Throughout the books, Siri, a nominal member of the party, concentrates on just laying low and getting his job done. His wry sense of humor and attitude that he has seen just about everything already get him through situations that would defeat weaker men.
I listened to the audio book version, which I commend to you, as the Laotian names and words are pronounced in ways that are not obvious to western eyes and ears.
March 14, 2023
While the books in the Dr. Siri Paiboun series are soft crime dramas, there's enough humor inserted to lighten the mood. Set in Laos in the late 1970s, these stories present a world most of us never had an insight into -- at least I never had.
February 21, 2015
I've fallen in love with Dr. Siri Paiboun. He's seventy-three in 1977, and I'm a fifty-five year old lesbian, so who's to say it's not a match made in the pages. Still, I find myself identifying with the characters of these books in so many ways. I like the relationships in this series; they remind me of Sunday lunches at my Aunt Sis's house back when I was a kid. We talked about war, politics, who loved who, movie stars, and the world. I was about twelve, and my little sister and I would sit on the back porch smoking cigarettes and plan how we would save the world when we grew up. For some reason, this series has that feel that tone, and I can't wait to read each one. The actions of the characters in the Dr. Siri books become memories.
In this book, Dr. Siri has his hands full with wicked shamans, murderers, and corrupt politicians. Still, now I know what to look for when I want to find a pog, and this book has the wildest exorcism I've read about in a while. Kudos to Mr. Cotterill for another fine story.
Second read: I loved this book all over again. I had forgotten to mention the possession of Dr. Siri by a Cuban orderly living in Laos who spoke Vietnamese. Oh yea. This book was such a great read. I still sit on the porch smoking cigarettes and talking with my sister...on the phone now. I'm still in love with Dr. Siri...Hey! I'm faithful.
In this book, Dr. Siri has his hands full with wicked shamans, murderers, and corrupt politicians. Still, now I know what to look for when I want to find a pog, and this book has the wildest exorcism I've read about in a while. Kudos to Mr. Cotterill for another fine story.
Second read: I loved this book all over again. I had forgotten to mention the possession of Dr. Siri by a Cuban orderly living in Laos who spoke Vietnamese. Oh yea. This book was such a great read. I still sit on the porch smoking cigarettes and talking with my sister...on the phone now. I'm still in love with Dr. Siri...Hey! I'm faithful.
April 2, 2018
Third in the series and I am comfortable in thinking that Cotterill is using his "allegorical Laoness" to impart some interest and maybe empathy to what has happened to this multi-cultural land-locked country in Southeast Asia. I will definitely go on to the next in the series.
February 19, 2019
This is a wonderful series. The mysteries are complex, there is always a thread of humour, and there’s a paranormal twist. I’m looking forward to the next one,
July 9, 2019
It's strange that I so love a series that is completely out of my comfort range! Disco For The Departed was as quirky as the previous books, and a bit more mystical. As usual, I found this book to be rich in detail and insights about Laos and Vietnam in the 70s. The ending of this book was an absolute scream!! I laughed out loud more than once. This is not to say that this was strictly a light and happy read. The extreme poverty in these countries is not easy to read about, although how the inhabitants cope with it with dignity is inspiring. Anyway, I fall more in love with the main characters the more I read, and I can't wait to read Anarchy and Old Dogs.
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December 9, 2011Colin Cotterill is a good writer. Pure and simple. His plots are interesting, his settings are well researched and he has a good prose style. It's a pleasure to read his works. Often with mystery writers I find that plots are well developed - and the setting adds to the enjoyment but the writing is overly simple (Agatha Christie) or very choppy (Cara Black.) Cotterill so far has excelled on all accounts.
I highly recommend the Dr. Siri series. It probably adds to my interest that I have travelled in Laos but for those who have not it's a great introduction to a different world. Cotterill also introduced a new "detective" and setting with his recent "Killed at the whim of a Hat." I hope he continues with these characters.
I highly recommend the Dr. Siri series. It probably adds to my interest that I have travelled in Laos but for those who have not it's a great introduction to a different world. Cotterill also introduced a new "detective" and setting with his recent "Killed at the whim of a Hat." I hope he continues with these characters.
April 25, 2021
I don’t write reviews.
Another delightful adventure with Dr. Siri and Dtui. This time they are sent up to the north where Siri spent his wartime years healing the sick and injured in the cave systems on the edge of the jungle. A mummified corpse of a Cuban man is found in the concrete walk during construction work on the Presidents house. Time is of the essence since the Laotian Polit Bureau will shortly host a concert for the Vietnamese Communists in the place the mummy was uncovered.
There’s tons of great conversation between the doctor and Dtui. Her character is developed quite a bit. She often gives Dr. Siri a run for his money and surely vies for title of joint main character.
Black magic from Havana, true love, miracles, promises kept, friendship, laughter and wit. A very fun story. I think these are the best summer books.
Another delightful adventure with Dr. Siri and Dtui. This time they are sent up to the north where Siri spent his wartime years healing the sick and injured in the cave systems on the edge of the jungle. A mummified corpse of a Cuban man is found in the concrete walk during construction work on the Presidents house. Time is of the essence since the Laotian Polit Bureau will shortly host a concert for the Vietnamese Communists in the place the mummy was uncovered.
There’s tons of great conversation between the doctor and Dtui. Her character is developed quite a bit. She often gives Dr. Siri a run for his money and surely vies for title of joint main character.
Black magic from Havana, true love, miracles, promises kept, friendship, laughter and wit. A very fun story. I think these are the best summer books.
February 18, 2018
I'm still very much enjoying Dr Siri and his eccentricities. Usually they would begin to grate on me by now, but I find him a lovely, refreshing, no bullshit kinda character. On to the next adventure.
August 27, 2021
Another well done mystery in the Dr. Siri series. I enjoyed the main mystery as well as the secondary story with Geung. I think going back and forth between the two storylines helped move this book along.
April 27, 2021
Dr. Siri and the Cubans
Review of the Vintage Canada paperback edition (2007) of the Soho Crime hardcover original (2006)
I was late to the party and started my reading of Colin Cotterill's quirky Laos chief coroner Dr. Siri Paiboun mysteries with the 15th and supposed (I never rule out the possibility of continuations) final book "The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot" (2020). Luckily, my friend Karan had several of the earliest books to lend me and I was fortunately able to start the series from the beginning.
Disco for the Departed is the 3rd book of the series and is titled after a ghostly discotheque that the spiritually attuned coroner is drawn to during his investigation of the apparent deaths of some Cuban advisors in a northern province of Laos. Siri and nurse Dtui are both sent on the northern mission, leaving morgue attendant Geung Watajak at the mercy of their boss at the Justice Department, judge Huang. Geung is dispatched to the countryside with the army but promptly decides to walk back to the Vientiane capital. The book then regularly toggles between Siri's investigation and the perils of Geung's journey.
This series continues to delight with its overviews of Lao lifestyles and culture, the human persistence in the face of bureaucratic incompetence and Dr. Siri's unique investigative methods that combine spiritual perception with common sense intuition. I've already sourced #4 in the series, Anarchy and Old Dogs (2007), thanks to the Toronto Public Library.
Review of the Vintage Canada paperback edition (2007) of the Soho Crime hardcover original (2006)
I was late to the party and started my reading of Colin Cotterill's quirky Laos chief coroner Dr. Siri Paiboun mysteries with the 15th and supposed (I never rule out the possibility of continuations) final book "The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot" (2020). Luckily, my friend Karan had several of the earliest books to lend me and I was fortunately able to start the series from the beginning.
Disco for the Departed is the 3rd book of the series and is titled after a ghostly discotheque that the spiritually attuned coroner is drawn to during his investigation of the apparent deaths of some Cuban advisors in a northern province of Laos. Siri and nurse Dtui are both sent on the northern mission, leaving morgue attendant Geung Watajak at the mercy of their boss at the Justice Department, judge Huang. Geung is dispatched to the countryside with the army but promptly decides to walk back to the Vientiane capital. The book then regularly toggles between Siri's investigation and the perils of Geung's journey.
This series continues to delight with its overviews of Lao lifestyles and culture, the human persistence in the face of bureaucratic incompetence and Dr. Siri's unique investigative methods that combine spiritual perception with common sense intuition. I've already sourced #4 in the series, Anarchy and Old Dogs (2007), thanks to the Toronto Public Library.
April 10, 2020
I continue enjoying listening to the adventures of the irreverent Dr. Siri as I can’t read so much while sewing face masks. These are humorous, satisfying, entertaining, and continue providing insight into communist Laos and its complicated foreign affairs. In this installment we have Cubans entombed in cement, black magic, and yes, a disco for the departed. The mystery is a lot better than the previous one, and the cast and the humor just as good. My library has at least four more of these available on audio, which is great for taking one’s mind off the news. Onto the next one!
February 2, 2009
This is the third book in the series about Siri Paiboun, "the feisty 73-year-old national coroner of Laos" (as the backcover blurb says). This time he has to use his deductive powers and access to the spirit world to solve the deaths of three people before the Laotian and Vietnamese politburos show up at the old rebel capital for a national celebration.
Cotterill lets the less-than-benevolent side of the Pathet Lao show through a bit more here than in the previous two entries but the emphasis is still on the inefficiency and bureaucratic inanity of the government (Nurse Dtui is "courted" by the local security commander, who clears his marriage proposal with the Social Relations Council before asking her), and the focus is on the three main characters of the series: Dr. Siri, Nurse Dtui and Mr. Geung.
Dr. Siri was a doctor and soldier with the Pathet Lao, and hoped to enjoy a well-earned retirement after they defeated the Royalists but finds himself press ganged into being the national coroner when most other doctors in the country flee to Thailand or otherwise abroad. Though he believes in the ideals of the party, he joined the Communists largely because his beloved wife Boua had. Over the years, particularly after his wife dies, Siri has become disillusioned with the Party's methods and effectiveness but does his best to ensure that the unfortunates who come to his table receive some sort of justice. Nurse Dtui is his young female protege; the equal (potentially) of Siri at the operating table, she's just as good a detective as the good doctor outside the morgue. Mr. Geung is a young man with Down syndrome who works as Siri's lab assistant. Taken in by the previous coroner, Geung, ironically, knows more about autopsies and morgue procedures than either Siri or Dtui did when they first arrived.
Cotterill is good at invoking both the brutal realities of life for Laotians and the compassion that it can induce.
While the mystery is definitely secondary to the narrative, it is satisfactorily convoluted enough so that the reader doesn't immediately figure out what's going on. The only potential problem I foresee is that Cotterill may come to rely on Siri's access to the spirit world as a deus ex machina - if he can't figure things out deductively, Siri will just ask his spirit friends.
Cotterill lets the less-than-benevolent side of the Pathet Lao show through a bit more here than in the previous two entries but the emphasis is still on the inefficiency and bureaucratic inanity of the government (Nurse Dtui is "courted" by the local security commander, who clears his marriage proposal with the Social Relations Council before asking her), and the focus is on the three main characters of the series: Dr. Siri, Nurse Dtui and Mr. Geung.
Dr. Siri was a doctor and soldier with the Pathet Lao, and hoped to enjoy a well-earned retirement after they defeated the Royalists but finds himself press ganged into being the national coroner when most other doctors in the country flee to Thailand or otherwise abroad. Though he believes in the ideals of the party, he joined the Communists largely because his beloved wife Boua had. Over the years, particularly after his wife dies, Siri has become disillusioned with the Party's methods and effectiveness but does his best to ensure that the unfortunates who come to his table receive some sort of justice. Nurse Dtui is his young female protege; the equal (potentially) of Siri at the operating table, she's just as good a detective as the good doctor outside the morgue. Mr. Geung is a young man with Down syndrome who works as Siri's lab assistant. Taken in by the previous coroner, Geung, ironically, knows more about autopsies and morgue procedures than either Siri or Dtui did when they first arrived.
Cotterill is good at invoking both the brutal realities of life for Laotians and the compassion that it can induce.
While the mystery is definitely secondary to the narrative, it is satisfactorily convoluted enough so that the reader doesn't immediately figure out what's going on. The only potential problem I foresee is that Cotterill may come to rely on Siri's access to the spirit world as a deus ex machina - if he can't figure things out deductively, Siri will just ask his spirit friends.
February 3, 2011
First Sentence: Dr. Siri lay beneath the grimy mesh of the mosquito net watching the lizard’s third attempt.
Dr. Siri and Dturi have been sent to a “guest house” at revolutionary headquarters in the mountains of Huaphan province to attend a seminar intended to provide them with an ‘enlightened” understanding of the Marxist-Leninist system. What they did not expect was for an arm to be discovered rising out of a concrete path. The arm was attached to the body of a man who’d been encased in the concrete while still alive. Siri also did not expect, at 73, to find himself dancing to disco music only he could hear, nor for the Russian to whom Siri and Dturi reported back in Vientiane to ship their mortuary assistant, Geung off to Xieng Ngeim without their knowing.
It is always a pleasure to be back with Dr. Siri and friends. They truly are some of my favorite characters and it was particularly nice to learn more of mortuary assistant Geung’s background. Cotterill worked in an interesting point through Siri’s friend, Dr. Santiago who believes in shamans and the spirit world, that some form of shamanism is common to most cultures of the world outside those of European origin. Points such as that remind us the world is one filled with diverse philosophies and beliefs beyond our own; one of the gifts of reading.
Cotterill’s writing is filled with wonderful dialogue and humor, yet he also makes me think. Rather than the supernatural element being for the sake of fantasy, Cotteriall uses it to serious purpose—to make a point such as the impact of war on its innocent victims; those who just happen to live in the wrong place. He also makes us aware that bigotry exists in every country.
The story is one of relationships and loyalty. The mystery is an intriguing blend of the mystical and the plain, old ferreting out information. The book is an absolutely wonderful read.
DISCO FOR THE DEPARTED (Lic Inv/Para-Dr. Siri Paiboun-Loas-Cont/1977) – G+
Cotterill, Colin – 3rd in series
Quercus, UK Hardcover, ©2006 – ISBN: 9781847244147
Dr. Siri and Dturi have been sent to a “guest house” at revolutionary headquarters in the mountains of Huaphan province to attend a seminar intended to provide them with an ‘enlightened” understanding of the Marxist-Leninist system. What they did not expect was for an arm to be discovered rising out of a concrete path. The arm was attached to the body of a man who’d been encased in the concrete while still alive. Siri also did not expect, at 73, to find himself dancing to disco music only he could hear, nor for the Russian to whom Siri and Dturi reported back in Vientiane to ship their mortuary assistant, Geung off to Xieng Ngeim without their knowing.
It is always a pleasure to be back with Dr. Siri and friends. They truly are some of my favorite characters and it was particularly nice to learn more of mortuary assistant Geung’s background. Cotterill worked in an interesting point through Siri’s friend, Dr. Santiago who believes in shamans and the spirit world, that some form of shamanism is common to most cultures of the world outside those of European origin. Points such as that remind us the world is one filled with diverse philosophies and beliefs beyond our own; one of the gifts of reading.
Cotterill’s writing is filled with wonderful dialogue and humor, yet he also makes me think. Rather than the supernatural element being for the sake of fantasy, Cotteriall uses it to serious purpose—to make a point such as the impact of war on its innocent victims; those who just happen to live in the wrong place. He also makes us aware that bigotry exists in every country.
The story is one of relationships and loyalty. The mystery is an intriguing blend of the mystical and the plain, old ferreting out information. The book is an absolutely wonderful read.
DISCO FOR THE DEPARTED (Lic Inv/Para-Dr. Siri Paiboun-Loas-Cont/1977) – G+
Cotterill, Colin – 3rd in series
Quercus, UK Hardcover, ©2006 – ISBN: 9781847244147
July 9, 2014
This book has its pros and cons. On the pro side, the characters of Geung and Dtui are fleshed out in this volume; we find out more about their pasts and possible futures, and they are no longer two-dimensional supporting characters. There are some excellent twists in the narrative tail, and more than one good red herring--or at least a shot or two of nuoc mam!
On the con, I am moved to wonder if Cotterill has any experience writing TV dramas. It would seem so, as people tend to ask important questions, or say things like "Oh my goodness, look at that!" only to leave the reader hanging while we cut to an entirely different plot thread and group of characters. You can almost hear someone saying: "Aaaaaand--cue the commercial!" A couple of those cuts is fine, but halfway through it just got annoying.
While I'm on the subject of cons, I didn't feel that the whole "disco dance for the dead" added anything at all to the story. It felt rather dreadfully contrived, as I doubt many Lao peasants were fans of that particular musical excrescence, let alone being aware of it.
However, the ending was more rounded in this volume than in Volume Two; though as always several minor points are left unexplained, not so much is resolved via third parties telling it all. Two and a half stars, though, as things dragged a bit in the middle.
On the con, I am moved to wonder if Cotterill has any experience writing TV dramas. It would seem so, as people tend to ask important questions, or say things like "Oh my goodness, look at that!" only to leave the reader hanging while we cut to an entirely different plot thread and group of characters. You can almost hear someone saying: "Aaaaaand--cue the commercial!" A couple of those cuts is fine, but halfway through it just got annoying.
While I'm on the subject of cons, I didn't feel that the whole "disco dance for the dead" added anything at all to the story. It felt rather dreadfully contrived, as I doubt many Lao peasants were fans of that particular musical excrescence, let alone being aware of it.
However, the ending was more rounded in this volume than in Volume Two; though as always several minor points are left unexplained, not so much is resolved via third parties telling it all. Two and a half stars, though, as things dragged a bit in the middle.
July 7, 2017
The books in this series, so far, are a 3.75-4. Enjoyable reads. Quite different in several respects. Set in Laos in the 70s. An elderly state coroner for the communist party. A feisty female nurse/assistant. A morgue attendant with Down's Syndrome. Magical realism / shamanism / murder mysteries. Local, regional, and sometimes global Communist party politics presented sardonically as a backdrop to the goings on.
Why are these books so readable and warmly engaging? Most professional and amateur readers wonder that out loud. I don't have any answers, just agreement.
This series is also different in that I never even try to figure out the mystery. That's not because it feels impossible somehow. It just doesn't really occur to me. I'm just in it for the transport to a different time and place, and a visit with now familiar and just exotic enough quirky, real, original characters.
While I enjoy these books during the read, I neither yearn to get back to them when I'm not reading, nor get excited about the idea of reading the next one. It's a very low key relationship. But whenever I get around to the next one I know I'll enjoy it enough, respect it a lot, and not be sorry I read it.
Why are these books so readable and warmly engaging? Most professional and amateur readers wonder that out loud. I don't have any answers, just agreement.
This series is also different in that I never even try to figure out the mystery. That's not because it feels impossible somehow. It just doesn't really occur to me. I'm just in it for the transport to a different time and place, and a visit with now familiar and just exotic enough quirky, real, original characters.
While I enjoy these books during the read, I neither yearn to get back to them when I'm not reading, nor get excited about the idea of reading the next one. It's a very low key relationship. But whenever I get around to the next one I know I'll enjoy it enough, respect it a lot, and not be sorry I read it.
August 2, 2020
So let's start with the background. Our protagonist is an aging communist coroner in Laos with who happens to be a shaman as well. He has a young, attractive, wisecracking nurse for a sidekick along with a very loyal and gifted technician who happens to be autistic. He is somewhat of a cynic when it comes to party politics, as a result, his adventures often consist of a curious combination of bureaucratic nonsense combined with an exotic mysticism.
I know, I know, you would think somebody could come with an original premise for a series, rather than the same old tried and true combinations?
Well despite the unoriginal, oft used formula, Cotterill somehow manages once again to spin a pretty decent yarn. ...I mean, it is kinda mystical when you think about it.
I know, I know, you would think somebody could come with an original premise for a series, rather than the same old tried and true combinations?
Well despite the unoriginal, oft used formula, Cotterill somehow manages once again to spin a pretty decent yarn. ...I mean, it is kinda mystical when you think about it.
August 14, 2021
I love it when an author who has invented a good character gets settled in and obviously enjoys writing each ensuing book. This one's great. Geung, Dtui and Siri all underego some character development, and the sly humour is steady.
Siri reminds me of Master Li is Barry Hughart's excellent books about old-time China. THere can be no higher praise.
Siri reminds me of Master Li is Barry Hughart's excellent books about old-time China. THere can be no higher praise.
October 1, 2013
More murder and mayhem in Dr. Siri's Laos, with supernatural elements abounding. Cotterill continues to deliver the comfort of returning to an old friend to continue a pleasant, if somewhat odd, conversation on Laos and the great beyond.
October 29, 2018
This is really a wonderful series: warm, witty characters; an unusual and intriguing setting; combined with the author’s obvious love of the people and culture of Laos and his formidable talent for writing.
Dr. Siri is the reluctant national coroner - reluctant because he’d much rather be retired at age 70. Nevertheless, he uses his still-sharp brain to investigate the deaths of his “customers.” His assistants are Nurse Dtui, who has studied feverishly for an opportunity to study medicine in the Soviet Union, and Mr. Geung, a young man with Down’s syndrome.
Dr. Siri and Nurse Dtui have been “invited” to the northeastern part of the country where the communist revolutionaries had morphed the existing caves into concrete structures that rendered them invulnerable to American bombs during the war. A chunk of concrete became dislodged and fell onto the walkway of the President’s house; it was quickly apparent that a person was encased within the concrete and Dr. Siri has been charged with finding out who the body belonged to in life.
Meanwhile, Siri’s nemesis, Judge Heung, has taken the opportunity of Siri’s absence to get rid of “that moron” as he very impolitely calls Mr. Geung. He ordered Mr. Geung to a work camp; however, he didn’t count on Geung’s deep love for his work. Also, Geung had promised Siri that the would take care of the morgue in Dr. Siri’s absence - and Geung will not willingly break a promise. Geung is determined to get back to Vientiane, even if he has to walk.
We follow Dr. Siri and Nurse Dtui’s adventures; Nurse Dtui receives a proposal of marriage from a singularly unromantic, dedicated Communist, Comrade Lit, while Dr. Siri becomes a corporeal host to a murdered Cuban. We also get to see Mr. Geung’s travels across the Lao countryside.
I feel that this series is really beginning to hit its stride now and I really enjoyed this installment.
Dr. Siri is the reluctant national coroner - reluctant because he’d much rather be retired at age 70. Nevertheless, he uses his still-sharp brain to investigate the deaths of his “customers.” His assistants are Nurse Dtui, who has studied feverishly for an opportunity to study medicine in the Soviet Union, and Mr. Geung, a young man with Down’s syndrome.
Dr. Siri and Nurse Dtui have been “invited” to the northeastern part of the country where the communist revolutionaries had morphed the existing caves into concrete structures that rendered them invulnerable to American bombs during the war. A chunk of concrete became dislodged and fell onto the walkway of the President’s house; it was quickly apparent that a person was encased within the concrete and Dr. Siri has been charged with finding out who the body belonged to in life.
Meanwhile, Siri’s nemesis, Judge Heung, has taken the opportunity of Siri’s absence to get rid of “that moron” as he very impolitely calls Mr. Geung. He ordered Mr. Geung to a work camp; however, he didn’t count on Geung’s deep love for his work. Also, Geung had promised Siri that the would take care of the morgue in Dr. Siri’s absence - and Geung will not willingly break a promise. Geung is determined to get back to Vientiane, even if he has to walk.
We follow Dr. Siri and Nurse Dtui’s adventures; Nurse Dtui receives a proposal of marriage from a singularly unromantic, dedicated Communist, Comrade Lit, while Dr. Siri becomes a corporeal host to a murdered Cuban. We also get to see Mr. Geung’s travels across the Lao countryside.
I feel that this series is really beginning to hit its stride now and I really enjoyed this installment.
July 1, 2019
I am loving this series. In an earlier review, I mentioned that Siri reminds me of Gamache. But the series itself also reminds me of mysteries by Alex McCall Smith (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency) and Kerry Greenwood (Corinna Chapman mysteries). I think this is because there is a core set of characters that you return to in each book. In this case, Siri, Dtui and Geung actually go there own separate ways and are reunited at the end. Siri is still coming to terms with his supernatural abilities. In this story, there is the possibility that witchcraft has entered the country via some Cuban men. Dtui is coming into her own as far as her ability to solve medical cases and help with nursing. Geung is grappling with how to remain dutiful even when kidnapped and removed from the morgue/his work site. Yes, I just want to read more and more of these. A favorite image from this book: "He found himself mesmerized by the setting sun. He saw it as a huge bullet puncturing the horizon in slow motion. The horizon bled, red seeping from the entry wound, and oozing across the landscape. It occurred to him that forensic pathology might be damaging his appreciation of nature."
May 15, 2021
Third in the Dr. Siri Paiboun series, in which the reluctant national coroner of Laos is required to solve a mystery involving a mummified body part which is found protruding from a concrete path. An entertaining mixture of humor, supernatural happenings and character development this series gets better with each book. Next up is Anarchy and Old Dogs.
March 14, 2024
I love the Siri Palboun books! Dr Palboun is a 72 year old surgeon who has been compelled to be state coroner by the newly socialist government in Laos in the 1960’s. He is also host to the essence of a deceased shaman, so the answers to his cases are often revealed to him in dreams and visions. Excellent cast of characters, very funny,and the audiobook narrator, Clive Chafer, is great. This is the third of 15 books, and all are free on Audible for subscribers.
March 6, 2019
Really Pleasant Novel
I know Lao and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand so I'm familiar with the cultures. The mystery is an interesting one and the portrayal of Laos in 1977 is fascinating. I took Lao from professors from Laos and learned their version of Lao history. This book is a pleasure for mystery lovers and Lao fans alike.
I know Lao and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand so I'm familiar with the cultures. The mystery is an interesting one and the portrayal of Laos in 1977 is fascinating. I took Lao from professors from Laos and learned their version of Lao history. This book is a pleasure for mystery lovers and Lao fans alike.
December 18, 2020
Dr. Siri and Nurse Dtui leave the the Laotian capital of Vientiane to travel to the Huaphan mountain province that was formerly home to the Pathet Lao guerilla movement. Visiting some of his old haunts (literally) to solve a murder, Siri encounters old friends and new spirits. A compelling side story with morgue assistant Mr. Geung does not quite gel with the rest of the narrative. Another enjoyable read in a series featuring likable characters, lush settings, and just a touch of magic.
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