Colin Cotterill, SIX AND A HALF DEADLY SINS

This is the tenth book in the Dr. Siri Paiboun series.  They are set in the nineteen-seventies in Laos.  In this book, Siri is the now retired National Coroner of Laos who receives in the mail a traditional northern Laotian skirt with a finger stitched into the lining. Thus begins a scavenger hunt that takes Siri, his wife, Madame Dang, and his friend Civilai into the north where they get involved with drug dealers, an invading Chinese army, and an old enemy bent on revenge.

Although I have preferred some of the earlier books in the series more, this has Cotterill’s signature humor, his wonderful evocation of life in Laos, and an intricate but honest plot. If you have not tried a book in this series, I would urge you to do so.