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The Bangkok Asset (2015)

by John Burdett

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
1166248,882 (3.45)4
Sonchai Jitpleecheep--the brash and beguiling Royal Thai Police Force detective who has been our guide through John Burdett's five previous acclaimed Bangkok novels--is back. The former monk and devout Buddhist, forever battling to protect his karma from the assaults of morally compromising cases, is now faced with the most horrifying technological innovation to make its way to the streets of Bangkok, and a conspiracy of almost unfathomable reach. With Sonchai on this case is the young female inspector Krom. Like Sonchai, she's an outsider on the police force, but unlike him, she is socially savvy and a technological prodigy. When they're called to a demonstration--in the midst of a typhoon--of the deadly, superhuman strength of an American man who is seemingly controlled by a CIA operative, they have no idea what they're actually witnessing or why. Their reliably obtuse and unequivocally crooked boss, Colonel Vikorn, explains some of it, but the most telling questions remain unanswered: Could the Americans have figured out a way to create a physically and psychologically enhanced supersoldier? Are they testing him--or it--on Thai soil? And why is everyone, from the Bangkok police to the international community, so eager to turn a blind eye? Searching for the answers to these questions, Sonchai and Krom find themselves in a remote Cambodian jungle compound for aging American ex-soldiers, where they will discover just how far a government will go to protect its worst secrets--both past and present. But the case will also have much more personal repercussions for Sonchai, shaking his world to its very foundation and perhaps finally forcing him to confront his long-lost American father.… (more)
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» See also 4 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 6 (next | show all)
Let me start by saying 2 stars is generous, and only because I really liked the ending (assuming I understood it.) This is the sixth book in a series about a Thai detective, Sonchai Jitpleecheep, who has been seeking the identity of his G.I. father, about whom his Thai mother and madam will reveal very little. The Eastern mysticism and openness about sex/sexuality have made this series unusual. This one starts with a horrific murder (a young teenage girl is torn up) intended to engage Sonchai because of a message about his father left by the killer. However, it degenerates into convoluted military fantasy about breeding superhumans/transhumans to be the ultimate weapon for worldwide domination, which interests China, U.S. and Russia. Sonchai becomes a central figure because of his father and half-brother. ( )
  skipstern | Jul 11, 2021 |
The latest from Burdett. I had some trouble getting through this book. It became very talky about half-way through, and the plot sort of fizzled out on me.
Still I enjoy the mood of the book and the humor. ( )
  BillPilgrim | May 18, 2016 |
Just couldn't get into it
  marilynr | Feb 29, 2016 |
I love John Burdett. He's one of the few authors I know who can really get inside another culture and explore both how its the same, and different, as my own. In this episode of the investigations of Sonchai Jitpleecheep (half American, half Thai detective in Bangkok), he veers into spooky territory. Trans-humans, Vietnamese / american "Apocalypse Now" camps in the Cambodian jungle, and of course a good mystery. Great fun. ( )
  viking2917 | Jan 17, 2016 |
I probably shouldn't have started with this book in the Sonchai Jitpleecheep series. But I was not aware of this being part of a series of books staring this Royal Thai Police Force detective. I'm both glad I read this book and not sure I'm glad I read this book! Will have to think about this for awhile to make up my mind. ( )
  Dianekeenoy | Sep 6, 2015 |
Showing 1-5 of 6 (next | show all)
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Sonchai Jitpleecheep--the brash and beguiling Royal Thai Police Force detective who has been our guide through John Burdett's five previous acclaimed Bangkok novels--is back. The former monk and devout Buddhist, forever battling to protect his karma from the assaults of morally compromising cases, is now faced with the most horrifying technological innovation to make its way to the streets of Bangkok, and a conspiracy of almost unfathomable reach. With Sonchai on this case is the young female inspector Krom. Like Sonchai, she's an outsider on the police force, but unlike him, she is socially savvy and a technological prodigy. When they're called to a demonstration--in the midst of a typhoon--of the deadly, superhuman strength of an American man who is seemingly controlled by a CIA operative, they have no idea what they're actually witnessing or why. Their reliably obtuse and unequivocally crooked boss, Colonel Vikorn, explains some of it, but the most telling questions remain unanswered: Could the Americans have figured out a way to create a physically and psychologically enhanced supersoldier? Are they testing him--or it--on Thai soil? And why is everyone, from the Bangkok police to the international community, so eager to turn a blind eye? Searching for the answers to these questions, Sonchai and Krom find themselves in a remote Cambodian jungle compound for aging American ex-soldiers, where they will discover just how far a government will go to protect its worst secrets--both past and present. But the case will also have much more personal repercussions for Sonchai, shaking his world to its very foundation and perhaps finally forcing him to confront his long-lost American father.

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