Angkor Away

Paul is a graphic designer with a history that has included organising events on the London rave scene and supplying recreational drugs across the capital. Disillusioned by the way the scene has been taken over by organised crime, he turns his back on it and, after a few years working for a prestigious design company, he leaves the UK to travel the world, picking up the odd bit of legal and illegal work on the way. After meeting some gifted Thai chemists, Paul sets up a lab in Northern Thailand producing high-quality LSD. When his new business comes to the attention of the local crime lord/army general he has to leave Thailand quickly and relocates to Cambodia where his friend has a bar. There he meets Aya and falls in love. But through Aye he meets her brother Chamreun, a former air force colonel who is now involved in the Cambodian drugs trade and who knows far more about Paul's life than he should. It's not long till Paul is pulled back into the world of drug trafficking against his wishes and is involved with the biggest drugs cartel in the region. But when things turn sour, Paul finds himself in a frantic hunt across South East Asia as they look for answers. But when they find them in a bloody climax, the answers are not at all what Paul had expected.

Angkor Away (International Intrigue)

By Steven W. Palmer

Independent Publishing Platform

ISBN #978-1514300367

Price $9.99 (Paperback)

Price $3.00 (Kindle)

246 Pages

Rating 3-Stars

Paul Johnston has settled in Cambodia and Thailand where he operates his drug distribution. Until a local general makes him an offer he can’t refuse –turn over all his contacts and leave Phnom Penh, and leave the drug business to him. All is well and good until he falls in love with Aya and meets her brother, Chamreum, who knows more about him than he does. Colonel Hoen Chamreun wants to be a part of the big drug trade also, and makes a suggestion to Paul. It all sounds like a workable plan, and he returns to Phnom Penh to meet with the general, this time making a counter offer that interest the general, and a deal is made. Unfortunately, a life in drugs doesn’t promise a happy ending, and when Aya is killed in a home burglary, the evidence leads back to the general and his people. Now Paul and Colonel Chamreum must retaliate.

Unfortunately, the novel wasn’t of much interest. Most of it was like a travel guide, and the drug plot was even less of a highlight for me. None of the characters, with the exception of Chamreum, held little promise. Paul Johnston, who narrates the story, was the least likable character in the story. The only thing the story had going for it was the location. Usually, Cambodia and Thailand people and the nightlife on the strips are enough to hold most readers, but this story had trouble keeping my attention, and the book was easy to put down while I did other things. Not something an author wants the reader to do.

Tom Johnson

Author of THE MAN IN THE BLACK FEDORA

The Ming Inheritance

The Ming Inheritance (Murder Mystery)

By T. Hunt Locke

Independent Publishing Platform

ISBN #978-1482680638

358 Pages

Price $12.99 (paperback)

Price $3.99 (Kindle)

Rating 3-Stars

Sam Collins, a former Boston City police detective, is happily retired in Chiang Mai, Thailand when his world is turned upside down. Innocently helping a friend track down a colleague Sam suddenly finds himself entangled in a mystery over 600 hundred years old. From the picturesque mountains of Mae Hong Song to the seedy go-go bars of Pattaya, Sam is lured into a race against time and history

When a drug lord murders Detective Collins’ family, Sam Collins kills him vigilante-style, and is forced to retire from the Boston Police Department where he worked undercover to stop drug trafficking. Instead of retiring to Florida, where 99% of these retired police detectives seem to go, Sam goes to Thailand, and that caught my interest in the story, as I was tired of all the retired detectives in Florida and wanted to see if Thailand would work out. New York city attorney, Jon Brochstein also retires and moves to Thailand where he opens a private detective agency. He and Sam Collins are old friends. One of Jon’s local detectives is missing and Jon asks Sam to look into the case. Oddly there seems to be a buried treasure involved and people are being killed to protect the secret.

The novel is well written, but could have used an editor. The author turns this little mystery into a travelogue and history lesson of Thailand, which made me want to go back to the Florida detectives. I’m not sure how old Collins is supposed to be, but remember he’s retired from the Boston Police Department, plus he goes through several colleges for diplomas, so I’m thinking he’s no youngster; yet his description and actions make him sound young and vibrant. Big, tough, and handsome of course: all the girls want to make love to him. So there is lots of descriptive sex added to the story, giving even less space for the mystery. Plus his desire for messages throws the mystery even more into the background. Another point that upset me the author gives special names to the villains. The villains are Wayne Travers and William Attenborn; their special names are Tun Perak and Iskandar. So now we have to remember who’s who when these four names pop up. If that wasn’t bad enough we have Professor Jiriporn Chaisaen who is given the name of Ajarn Lak. Personally, I wasn’t impressed with this first Sam Collins mystery set in Thailand. I’m hoping the sequels are better. However, if you want to learn about Thailand and it’s ancient history, then I highly recommend this as a travelogue and history of the country, with a little murder on the side.

Tom Johnson

Author of THE MAN IN THE BLACK FEDORA

Brannan's Run

Joe Brannan, owner and Captain of a dive boat working out of Thailand’s sin city Pattaya, is desperate to keep his business afloat, so when an old acquaintance comes to him with a tale of sunken riches he simply can’t resist taking a look. But nobody warned him he would risk losing everything, caught up in a maelstrom of twists and turns, malevolent villains, close calls and Cambodian pirates. And he certainly didn’t count on falling in love. “BRANNAN’S RUN- THE ULTIMATE BEACH READ.”

Brannan’s Run (Action/Adventure)

By Stephen Cord

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Book Manga

174 Pages

Price $4.99

Rating 5-Stars

“TWO-FISTED ADVENTURE IS BACK”

Joe Brannan, ex-pat now living in Thailand had served with 1^st Battalion British Parachute Regiment, but now operates a dive boat in the sea around Pattaya, Thailand. When he learns about a sunken Khmer Rouge boat loaded with gems in Cambodia water, the promise of wealth is too good to pass up. But others want the treasure too, including Cambodian Navy/pirates and the Russians, and either is willing to kill for them.

Then throw in a beautiful rich Russian woman with long legs and flaming red hair, and Joe just might take the chance after all. This was an exciting action adventure in the mold of those paperback originals of the 1950s, when tough men operated around the Java Sea and Asian Ports, looking for that one strike to make it rich, if they don’t get killed in the process. Then throw in some Muay Thai martial arts for fun. Except for the mature language, this would have fit easily into those early ARGOSY and ADVENTURE pulp magazines of a bygone era. We could use more of this genre today, reminiscent of the past when bold adventure created living legends of action heroes and dangerous dames. It’s also fun returning to the streets of Bangkok and the mysterious East, where beautiful women and death wait hand in hand for an unwary stranger. Highly recommended for the action and adventure lovers everywhere.

Tom Johnson

Echoes Magazine