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Book Summary and Reviews of Vulture Peak by John Burdett

Vulture Peak by John Burdett

Vulture Peak

A Sonchai Jitpleecheep Novel

by John Burdett

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  • Published:
  • Jan 2012, 304 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

When Police Colonel Vikorn puts Sonchai in charge of the highest profile criminal case in Thailand - ending trafficking in human organs - Sonchai suspects his boss of ulterior motives. And, of course, he's right: Vikorn is running for governor of Bangkok, and his American handlers insist that he needs a dramatic crime-fighting success right now. But just as Vikorn predicts, Sonchai's "goody-two-shoes Buddhist conscience" takes over. The sting operation begins.

Sonchai travels to Phuket, Hong Kong, Dubai, Monte Carlo, and Shanghai, drawing in a host of players, including an aging rock star wearing out his second liver, and a pair of Chinese twins known as the Vultures - mysterious, diabolical, albeit gorgeous co-queenpins of the international body-parts trade. But closer to home, things are getting dicey for Sonchai: his ex-prostitute wife, Chanya, is craving a dose of "the street." Is Sonchai enlightened enough - forget Buddhism, think jealousy - to let her into his own compromised and compromising world?

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Burdett's work caught on at the beginning and remains strong; all thriller readers should enjoy." - Library Journal

"Burdett's strengths are tilted toward characterization rather than plotting, for Buddhist Sonchai remains a fascinating cross between Buddhist monk and hard-boiled detective." - Kirkus Reviews

"Burdett's writing remains fresh, humorous, and full of insights into Thailand, but readers who prefer focus and suspense should look elsewhere." - Publishers Weekly

This information about Vulture Peak was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

John Burdett Author Biography

John Burdett is a nonpracticing lawyer who worked in Hong Kong for a British firm until he found his true vocation as a writer. Since then, he has lived in France and Spain, and Thailand and is now back in Hong Kong. His novels include Bangkok 8, A Personal History of Thirst, The Last Six Million Seconds, Bangkok Tattoo, Bangkok Haunts, The Godfather of Kathmandu, Vulture Peak, and The Bangkok Asset (2015).

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