Bangkok Bob and the missing Mormon
by Stephen Leather.
Three Elephants Publications, 2011, 288 pages. www.dco.co.th
Having been in the U.S. military, one thing I (and probably every other military person) do when watching a film is to see if the film producers got it all ‘correct’ on the screen. That means are the ribbons on the uniform in the right order, are they using the right equipment for the scene and the year being portrayed, is the always colourful military jargon being spoken accurately, regardless of what the plot is – did they get it all ‘right’? (Nothing is more irritating to see if they did not).
Stephen Leather gets it ‘right’ in ‘Bangkok Bob and the missing Mormon’. Our protagonist, an ex New Orleans policeman named Bob Turtledove gets deeply immersed in a simple missing person case. But he also quickly finds is the usual Bangkok situation that all expats in Thailand constantly face: Russian mafia-types, contract assassins, kickboxing thugs, and another lowlife, nasty ‘farangs’ bent on his early demise. A real rollercoaster ride of great entertainment. For hardcore Bangkok murder mystery buffs. 5 stars.
