“The bars are temples but the pearls ain’t free…”
Review by Lilah Shahkhor
It is said that “One night in Bangkok and the world’s your oyster,” but for one American on a seemingly ordinary night in Thailand’s capital, it turns into a nightmare. Cody is a software developer and his company is in Bangkok to celebrate its proprietary point-of-sale software’s purchase by an independent Thai jewelry corporation. Little does Cody realize that his innocent yet curious foray into Patpong’s infamous red-light district, will plunge him headlong into the underworld of the black market gem trade, and a maze of interconnecting sex club tunnels, resulting in his kidnapping, all for reasons unknown.
Even though he remains faithful to his wife Kelsie, Cody’s predicament finds him at the mercy of a kindhearted bar girl, whose quick thinking and selflessness belies the stereotype of the typical Thai sex worker. She helps him skillfully navigate a heart-pounding chase through Patpong’s streets and its underground, with burly, bad ass looking criminals in hot pursuit…but why? What could this sweet, geeky, law-abiding American have done to elicit the ire of Thai gangsters?
Once it becomes obvious that Cody has missed his return flight home, Kelsie feels something is very wrong. While not entirely incongruous, since she works for a New York private investigator, she heads to Bangkok to find him. Not knowing the language and entirely out of her depth, Kelsie unexpectedly gets help from a ladyboy, who assists through the customs, corners, and complexities of Patpong.
I found this book to be a fun and addictive adventure from start to finish. With its exhilarating and suspenseful pace, I was pushed right into the deep end along with Cody, experiencing the panic and confusion with him. I enjoyed racing along the bustling streets and weaving through the bars, clubs, and landmarks, all places that I’ve never been to myself, but which the author describes in-depth with the accuracy of someone who has. Chappell has a talent for bringing her books’ settings to life, and does so especially well in the exotic locations traversed in Panic in Patpong. I also learned a lot more than I had anticipated about the jewelry industry, along with its dark side of the ongoing existence of the blood gem trade. For me, I couldn’t put it down, needing to know what was going to happen next, right up until its satisfying ending, when finally, like the song says, “the tough guys tumble.”
The official website of Lita-Luise Chappell, writer on sex, magic, food, distant lands, and everyday life with articles, poetry, novels, travelogues, rituals, cookbooks, and short-stories.
