“The Queen of Patpong” by Timothy Hallinan

The Queen of Patpong is a razor-sharp, convincing, and heartbreaking glimpse of the dark underbelly of a culture, and a white-knuckle thriller all in one. Hold on tight and cancel your morning meetings. Hallinan is a stunning talent.

Ferociously compelling and deeply moving – the rare thriller that manages to keep you on the edge of your seat at the same time it opens your eyes and heart.

Tim Hallinan is one of the great unsung mystery writers. HIs latest in the Poke Rafferty series is his best yet. Not only is it a terrific mystery but the writing is so fine, you want to read it aloud. The Queen of Patpong opens with a beguiling chapter heading “Caliban.” And from there it takes off like a stealth bomber, a narrative-soaked novel that screams to be filmed. For shamefully too long. Hallinan has flown under the radar. This novel alone deserves to place him up there with the heavyweights. John Burdett writes about Bangkok. Tim Hallinan is…Bangkok.

I have loved all of Tim Hallinan’s Bangkok novels and his latest, The Queen of Patpong, is the best yet. Hallinan is a wordsmith of the first order, and he puts his great narrative skills into overdrive on his one. A great personal story with universal themes, and even a dash of Shakespeare. You won’t read a better thriller this year.

In the Queen of Patpong, author Timothy Hallinan takes us deep into the seedy underbelly of Bankok’s red-light district. Hallinan’s prose, rich and compelling, builds a steady tension toward a justified ending. I enjoyed this book immensely.

I have long been a fan of Tim Hallinan’s Poke Rafferty series, each year looking forward to when the new one would come out. I thought he was going to be hard pressed to surpass last years BREATHING WATER, but THE QUEEN OF PATPONG blows everything else away. That’s not saying you shouldn’t read the others (A NAIL THROUGH THE HEART, THE FOURTH WATCHER, & BREATHING WATER), you should. They are simply fantastic. Still, there are few books written by anyone as good as THE QUEEN OF PATPONG. It is quite simply my favorite book of the year, and that’s saying a lot. It is heart wrenching, terrifying, and beautiful. Tim’s prose will suck you in and you’ll forget everything else.