Books 2012: a delightful mystery

[hawkwing_lb]

Books 2012: 186


186. Colin Cotterill, The Coroner's Lunch. Quercus, 2010 edition.

1976: Kidnapped by the Party and appointed national coroner. (I often weep at the thought of the great honour bestowed upon me.)

Sincerely,

Dr. Siri Paiboun.

I can't remember where I first heard about the Dr. Siri Mysteries, although I think it might have been from rysmiel. Now that I've finally gotten around to checking out The Coroner's Lunch, the first instalment, it turns out it's quite my thing. Set in 1970s Communist Laos, starring septuagenarian doctor, reluctant coroner, sceptical seer-of-dead-spirits Dr. Siri Paiboun, it has a mild and delightful sense of humour and a decidedly interesting sense of place. The mystery's entertaining, and the pace and prose are rather well done.

I would like to know how accurate its treatment of 1970s Laos is; but I have too many other things to do than to research it.

---

Fortunately, The Coroner's Lunch is not a very demanding book, because my brain is still away with the cold drugs and my throat feels like raw meat. Concentration, it's not exactly the happening thing right now.

Yes, I do plan to continue whining until I feel better, thank you for asking.

Comments

[rysmiel.livejournal.com]

Oh, glad you enjoyed. I heard about these from mrissa and I'm not aware of anyone else who reads them. They vary somewhat since, but are for the most part about that much fun; I do not recall whether I have got around to posting about it yet, but The Merry Misogynist is something of an exception that I felt had serious problems.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

I've immediately gone and ordered the second and third one (since the Book Depo had the third one for three quid). Coroner's Lunch made delightful light sickroom-reading, but it's good to be forewarned about The Merry Misogynist - I can think of some possible really bad problems just from the title and the jacket description.

(The Coroner's Lunch, I may have to evangelise.)

ETA: So it was you I heard about them from. Good to know my mind isn't entirely gone awa' with the fairies.