In this third installment of the Poke Rafferty series, Rafferty has settled down with his Thai wife, Rose and their adopted daughter, Miaow. He's espoused the best of Asian culture while still keeping his own quintessentially American point of view. He's also given up his habit of looking into Bangkok's seemier aspects--a habit that was intriguing, but habitually dangerous.
Poker Game Gone Bad
Just when Poke has vowed to stay out of compromising situations, trouble finds him. He agrees to participate in a high-stakes poker game with a controversial, self-made millionaire who is alternately hailed as a messiah and as a crook. When Poke wins the match, he is given the opportunity to choose an unexpected prize: the chance to write this man's biography--a coveted "get" among Thai journalists and writers.
Poke jumps at this plum writing assignment, but soon discovers that their are political factions that would do anything to keep such a book from being published--including harming Poke's wife and daughter. Unfortunately, the people that would like to see this biography written are just as adamant--and just as dangerous.
Boo Returns
To complicate matters, Miaow's missing street friend, Boo (whom readers met in the first Poke Rafferty novel), reappears with a young girl caught up in a baby-selling scheme in tow. Great! Now Poke has two more people to keep safe. As the various forces converge around him, it will take all of Poke's resources and friends to keep him and his family alive...and not all of his group will make it.
Breathing Water is an expertly-crafted novel, set in fascinating Southeast Asia, an where Hallinan lives an knows well. He doesn't shrink from the nastier elements of Thai life nor from the less popular realities of the region's politics. Combine that with lyrical sentences and characters with whom you'd like to spend an evening, and you've got a winning and compelling novel.
About Timothy Hallinan
Timothy Hallinan is the author of ten novels as well as a songwriter and a former college writing instructor. Hallinan is married and divides his time among his homes in California, Thailand, and Cambodia. He describes the writing and publishing process with refreshing (and amusing) candor in his blog. Hallinan will also be touring the United States in the fall of 2009, promoting Breathing Water. Look for him in a city near you.
Reviews of Other Recommended Mystery Novels
- A Nail through the Heart by Timothy Hallinan
- Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (John Banville)
- Exile by Richard North Patterson
- The Watchman by Robert Crais
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