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vkemp's review
5.0
Philip Rafferty, better known as Poke, is a travel writer living in Bangkok, Thailand with his household consisting of Rose, his girlfriend, a former go-go dancer and Miaow, a former street urchin. He longs to marry Rose and adopt Miaow but first, he has some issues to resolve. He has to track down Uncle Claus, for his distraught niece, Claudia; he has to find a friend of Miaow’s from her street days, named Superman and he has to locate a blackmailing thief for an old woman. Soon, all these tasks begin to overlap and Poke finds himself and his family in deep trouble. His Thai friend, Arthit, member of the Bangkok police, offers as much help as he can, but Poke is being hunted by other members of the police force, in the pay of the evil Madame Wing. Poke is shot at; beaten up; lied to at every step of the way. It is quite an exciting thrill ride. The resolution is very satisfactory, but there are questions left hanging for a sequel. A great read, with a wonderful sense of place; if you are looking for what it is like to live in Thailand, this is the book to read (but only if your name is Poke Rafferty).
jasoncjoyner's review
4.0
This book is an eye-opening journey into Bangkok and some of the darkness that exists there. The story is interesting if bleak at times. The author did a very good job with twists and turns and changing sympathy for people you initially thought were the bad guys.
It was an easy read - thoughtful but page-turning. It does deal with some serious, adult issues like child pornography and torture, so those who are squeamish should take care here. For those who don't like profanity, there is language sprinkled throughout, but I didn't feel it was too excessive.
He didn't tie every thread up neatly at the end, so he did leave me interested in reading more in the series down the road, but I will take a break for a little while since it is a heavy book with its subject matter.
It was an easy read - thoughtful but page-turning. It does deal with some serious, adult issues like child pornography and torture, so those who are squeamish should take care here. For those who don't like profanity, there is language sprinkled throughout, but I didn't feel it was too excessive.
He didn't tie every thread up neatly at the end, so he did leave me interested in reading more in the series down the road, but I will take a break for a little while since it is a heavy book with its subject matter.
samhouston's review
5.0
I have had an interesting (well, interesting to me, at least) experience reading Timothy Hallinan’s Poke Rafferty series. The series, which began with 2007’s A Nail Through the Heart, is soon to be seven books long, but I only started reading it at book number five, The Fear Artist. Since then, I have read book six, book four, and now finally book one. As I always try to read a series in the order the books are published, this jumping around has, I think, given me a different perspective on the evolution of main characters than the one I usually get.
I do not mean to imply that Tim Hallinan’s plots are not first class crime thriller plots when I say that the main reason I keep reading the Poke Rafferty books is that I have fallen in love with several of the main characters. Poke Rafferty, travel writer, has come to Thailand to continue his rather cynical series of travel books but he finds things in Bangkok that he very much needed: a good woman and a purpose for his life. Rose, a Thai bar girl, would seem to be an unlikely choice for a wife, but Poke senses that there is more to Rose than meets the eye (and she certainly attracts the eye). And then there’s Miaow, the little girl that Poke cannot bear to leave on Bangkok’s dangerous streets. Miaow is a streetwise, precocious little kid who is wise beyond her years. She has a mouth on her and a deadly sense of humor, and it easy to understand why Poke cares for her so deeply.
And there’s Arthit, one of the very few honest policeman in Bangkok - and Poke’s best friend. These two have the kind of friendship that every man needs but seldom finds. Theirs is a relationship built on trust, honesty, respect, and a genuine fondness for each other. And then, of course, there is Poke himself, a man whose very nature makes it impossible for him to ignore the evilness he sees on the streets of Bangkok. As Rose said to Poke when they were discussing marriage, “You see a problem and your response is to fix it, like a broken air conditioner…” That’s Poke: Mr. Fix It.
The thing that surprised me about A Nail Through the Heart is that each of the main characters is already so fully fleshed out as introduced in this series opener. More times than not, in my experience, an author will continue to add layers to the continuing characters for several books rather than to have them this refined in an opener. They more often focus on plot as a way to ensure that readers will want to read the next book in the series. Hallinan, instead, manages first time out to combine a top-notch thriller plot with unique, memorable characters.
A Nail Through the Heart takes a long, hard look at what is still one of the main industries of Asian cities like Bangkok: prostitution. If the Bangkok bar girl lifestyle were not already bad enough, the sexual exploitation of the city’s street children puts Bangkok in a league all its own. Poke Rafferty refuses to watch the exploitation of those too weak to defend themselves – and if he has to play dirty to rescue a child or a young woman, he is ready to do whatever it takes.
Bottom Line: The Poke Rafferty books may not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended, but readers willing to open their eyes to the real world are guaranteed to learn something in every book – even if it is only about themselves.
I do not mean to imply that Tim Hallinan’s plots are not first class crime thriller plots when I say that the main reason I keep reading the Poke Rafferty books is that I have fallen in love with several of the main characters. Poke Rafferty, travel writer, has come to Thailand to continue his rather cynical series of travel books but he finds things in Bangkok that he very much needed: a good woman and a purpose for his life. Rose, a Thai bar girl, would seem to be an unlikely choice for a wife, but Poke senses that there is more to Rose than meets the eye (and she certainly attracts the eye). And then there’s Miaow, the little girl that Poke cannot bear to leave on Bangkok’s dangerous streets. Miaow is a streetwise, precocious little kid who is wise beyond her years. She has a mouth on her and a deadly sense of humor, and it easy to understand why Poke cares for her so deeply.
And there’s Arthit, one of the very few honest policeman in Bangkok - and Poke’s best friend. These two have the kind of friendship that every man needs but seldom finds. Theirs is a relationship built on trust, honesty, respect, and a genuine fondness for each other. And then, of course, there is Poke himself, a man whose very nature makes it impossible for him to ignore the evilness he sees on the streets of Bangkok. As Rose said to Poke when they were discussing marriage, “You see a problem and your response is to fix it, like a broken air conditioner…” That’s Poke: Mr. Fix It.
The thing that surprised me about A Nail Through the Heart is that each of the main characters is already so fully fleshed out as introduced in this series opener. More times than not, in my experience, an author will continue to add layers to the continuing characters for several books rather than to have them this refined in an opener. They more often focus on plot as a way to ensure that readers will want to read the next book in the series. Hallinan, instead, manages first time out to combine a top-notch thriller plot with unique, memorable characters.
A Nail Through the Heart takes a long, hard look at what is still one of the main industries of Asian cities like Bangkok: prostitution. If the Bangkok bar girl lifestyle were not already bad enough, the sexual exploitation of the city’s street children puts Bangkok in a league all its own. Poke Rafferty refuses to watch the exploitation of those too weak to defend themselves – and if he has to play dirty to rescue a child or a young woman, he is ready to do whatever it takes.
Bottom Line: The Poke Rafferty books may not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended, but readers willing to open their eyes to the real world are guaranteed to learn something in every book – even if it is only about themselves.
beedoc's review
1.0
The characters and dialog are extremely inauthentic. We don't know much about the main character's background other than that he's written some travel guides for SE Asia. He's trying to start a life in Bangkok but he seems fluent in Thai and very knowledgeable about Thai society. He has philosophical discussions of why life is unfair with a 12 year old street kid. His neighbor happens to be a cop who went to boarding school in England so they are able to engage in verbal repartee in English. The Thais in the book use sarcasm, irony and one-liners like dialog from some Hollywood film noir of the 40's.
The situations are also cringe-inducing. We are supposed to sympathize with the main character because he wants to adopt an 8 year old former street kid. The interaction between Poke and Miaow are pretty sappy. Also in real life, Rose would dump Poke the minute she found out Poke has a former street kid living with him and Poke wants to adopt the kid.
The author uses 2 of the most sensationalist topics in SE Asia, Khmer Rouge genocide and child sex abuse, to show that the book has some moral weight and pretend that the book engages in some discussion about the nature of justice. But to me it just seems like sensationalism for the sake of sensationalism. By the way, the 2 plot strands intersect due to a coincidence that Madam Wing hired Doughnut, the maid. Other than that coincidence they don't have anything to do with each other.
I realize that in these mysteries there is creative license and stretching of the boundaries of believability but this is not creative license. This is just bad writing. I am really puzzled how so many other reviewers like/love this book.
The situations are also cringe-inducing. We are supposed to sympathize with the main character because he wants to adopt an 8 year old former street kid. The interaction between Poke and Miaow are pretty sappy. Also in real life, Rose would dump Poke the minute she found out Poke has a former street kid living with him and Poke wants to adopt the kid.
The author uses 2 of the most sensationalist topics in SE Asia, Khmer Rouge genocide and child sex abuse, to show that the book has some moral weight and pretend that the book engages in some discussion about the nature of justice. But to me it just seems like sensationalism for the sake of sensationalism. By the way, the 2 plot strands intersect due to a coincidence that Madam Wing hired Doughnut, the maid. Other than that coincidence they don't have anything to do with each other.
I realize that in these mysteries there is creative license and stretching of the boundaries of believability but this is not creative license. This is just bad writing. I am really puzzled how so many other reviewers like/love this book.
cspiwak's review
4.0
like the Bangkok 8 series, this book gives a horrifying idea of what life is like in Thailand. It is not for the faint of heart. be prepared to encounter the worst kind of depravity and abuse you can imagine, with children as victims. That said, I felt the overall tone of the book was optimistic. It feels a bit noir-like, people with their own code trying to survive in a dark world. Will try more
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