Wow talk about a dark book. Makes Apocalypse Now, look like a Disney cartoon. This is an outstanding story about a German private detective sent to Cambodia to find the son of a wrathful German family. The leftover bad guys of the Khmer Rouge doing what they did during the time of the killing fields will leave you shocked.
This is an excellent book. ( )

TW: torture, murder

Tom Vater is an excellent noir writer, as he exhibits in The Cambodian Book of the Dead. Fans of the genre will appreciate his deftness, while newcomers can appreciate the way he draws his readers into his books like a spider collects prey in its web. Readers who enjoy reading Asian literature will find a compelling story but definitely not one for the faint of heart.

The story is set in Cambodia, where Detective Maier is sent to find the missing German heir of a coffee empire. Maier had been a war correspondent during the Khmer Rouge genocide in the mid-1970’s. Maier returns to Cambodia searching for Rolf and encounters the brutality and corruption that has emerged since the war ended. Will he successfully complete his mission? Will he even survive the mission?

What makes Vater’s writing addictive is how he draws a reader into his world. He says in 50 words what some writers say in 10. If he were to cut down his word count, the remaining story would be so dry it would turn to dust. You feel the booming of the nightclub speakers, smell whatever’s being smoked, and see nearby people struggling in his chaotically presented scene. He presents a vivid picture to readers even those who have never been to Cambodia, never tried to survive in a war zone, never been a detective.

Tom Vater won’t let you sit in the bleachers as he presents his tale - he grabs you and demands your attention to everything going on. The story is ugly, it’s cynical…and utterly riveting.

Thank you, Blackthorn Book Tours for providing a copy of this book. ( )

Wow talk about a dark book. Makes Apocalypse Now, look like a Disney cartoon. This is an outstanding story about a German private detective sent to Cambodia to find the son of a wrathful German family. The leftover bad guys of the Khmer Rouge doing what they did during the time of the killing fields will leave you shocked.
This is an excellent book. ( )

I received an eBook copy of this title from the author for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for the review, and all conclusions are my own responsibility.

I adore a good mystery, always have. Add in sharp detail that feels like “feet on the ground” research and it becomes a near perfect setting for me. Being acquainted with several people who are either Cambodian or were in refugee camps as a result of either the Vietnam War or the Khmer Rouge, and having my own visions of the beauty and history of the people: I instantly was interested in the story and where it would go. So, I was predisposed to like the book on those grounds alone. What I did not expect was the intelligent and very liberal sprinkling and references to the history of the country that all serve to better define and help the reader to ‘understand’ the interactions.

Maier is a former war correspondent from Germany: his speciality was the Southeast Asian area. Nearing the end of the “defined” war in Cambodia, his fixer Hort was killed by a bomb, left to kill him. Maier returned to Germany, handed in his resignation and accepted a position with the leading Investigative Agency in the area. He returns to Cambodia, with his memories and knowledge to track down and ‘return’ a German ex-pat to his family per his mother’s request.

During his investigation, we encounter many of his connections: Carissa an Australian who left her country for the freewheeling world of the “all night” Cambodia, and has entrée into the ‘now and current’ happenings in the country.

What starts as a fairly straight line to the finish mystery / detective story is so peppered with twists and references to violence remembered and current, juxtaposed against the stark beauty amid devastation from 20 years of war, and the actual beauty of the people seen through the jaded eyes of Maier: this story is haunting and palpable with tension.

The style is very much one of a war correspondent: while details are beautifully described and details are clearly presented, the prose is spare and less flowery than many would like. When reliving his memories of times past, we see what feels like a wish for it to be different – for him to reencounter scenes and places of the past again, with fresh eyes and the ability to appreciate the beauty without the knowledge of horrors contained in the history of the spaces and places. By the end of the book, you are treated to an understanding, at least as complete as Westerners are able to have on the feel of the place, and the history of its people. It is a beautiful testament, in an offhanded way, to the power of the human will to live, to survive and the equally powerful ability to forget because remembering is far too painful.

I really did enjoy this book, while parts were slower for me than others; the indescribable need to read with my back against a wall was nearly constant. The tension that Maier feels as a westerner in a land that tends to view all outsiders with scepticism, if not outright hostility, was transmitted through the words and plot. It was a great read for mystery and history fans alike.
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