John Burdett is a nonpracticing lawyer who worked in Hong Kong for a British firm until he found his true vocation as a writer. He has also lived in France, Spain, and Thailand. He is the author of A Personal History of Thirst, The Last Six Million Seconds, Bangkok 8, Bangkok Tattoo, Bangkok Haunts, and the newly released The Godfather of Kathmandu.
From a Q & A with the author at Amazon:
Question: Just to give some background for new readers, what sort of man is Detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep, and where do we find him at the beginning of The Godfather of Kathmandu?
John Burdett: Sonchai is the illegitimate son of a Bangkok prostitute and an American G.I. father whom he has never met, although he is always trying to do so. 
After participating in the murder of his yaa baa (meth) dealer when he was a teen, he was forced to undertake some serious rehabilitation at a tough forest monastery in the far North of Thailand (his mother was connected to the abbot). To continue his rehabilitation after he disrobed, his mother found him a position as cadet in the Royal Thai Police Force, which brought him under the influence of the notorious Police Colonel Vikorn, whose feudal value system permits him to regard his commission as a licence to traffic in narcotics. In The Godfather of Kathmandu, their relationship develops to the point where Vikorn appoints him as his consigliere in the style of the Sicilian Mafia, after watching an illegal copy in Thai of the Godfather movies. In his inner life Sonchai is a devout and--unusual, considering his background--rather erudite Buddhist who is permanently tested in his faith not only by the kind of work he has to do for Vikorn, but also by his attraction to beautiful women. His spiritual side does not always prevail.
Question: Some time ago in the New York Times, you said this novel was the final installment in the Bangkok series. Does that still stand?
John Burdett: I did say that, although...[read on]
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