Colin Cotterill Books In Order

Dr. Siri Paiboun Books In Publication Order

The Coroner’s Lunch (2004)
Thirty-Three Teeth (2005)
Disco for the Departed (2006)
Anarchy and Old Dogs (2007)
Curse of the Pogo Stick (2008)
The Merry Misogynist (2009)
Love Songs from a Shallow Grave (2010)
Slash and Burn (2011)
The Woman Who Wouldn’t Die (2013)
Six and a Half Deadly Sins (2015)
I Shot the Buddha (2016)
The Rat Catchers’ Olympics (2017)
Don’t Eat Me (2018)
The Second Biggest Nothing (2019)
The Delightful Life of a Suicide Pilot (2020)

Jimm Juree Books In Publication Order

Killed at the Whim of a Hat (2011)
Granddad, There’s a Head on the Beach (2012)
Hidden Genders (2012)
The Axe Factor (2013)
The Amok Runners (2016)

Jimm Juree Case Files Books In Publication Order

The Funeral Photographer (2017)
When You Wish Upon a Star (2017)
Highway Robbery (2017)
The Zero Finger Option (2018)
Trash (2018)
Spay With Me (2018)
Sex on the Beach (2018)
Smelly Man (2018)
Maprao Syndrome (2019)
Tom Tom (2019)
Whale Vomit (2019)
Lost Property (2019)

Standalone Novels In Publication Order

The Night Bast*ard (2000)
Evil In The Land Without (2003)
Pool and its Role in Asian Communism (2005)
Average Alan (2013)
Bleeding in Black and White (2015)

Short Story Collections In Publication Order

Ageing Disgracefully: Short Stories about Atrocious Old People (2009)
Famous Last Selfies (2018)

Anthologies In Publication Order

Damn Near Dead (2006)
A Study in Sherlock (2011)

Dr. Siri Paiboun Book Covers

Jimm Juree Book Covers

Jimm Juree Case Files Book Covers

Standalone Novels Book Covers

Short Story Collections Book Covers

Anthologies Book Covers

Colin Cotterill Books Overview

The Coroner’s Lunch

This series kickoff is an embarrassment of riches: Holmesian sleuthing, political satire, and a droll comic study of a prickly late bloomer. Kirkus Reviews starred review The sights, smells, and colors of Laos practically jump of the pages of this inspired, often wryly witty first novel. Denver Post A wonderfully fresh and exotic mystery…
. If Cotterill…
had done nothing more than treat us to Siri’s views on the dramatic, even comic crises that mark periods of government upheaval, his debut mystery would still be fascinating. But the multiple cases spread out on Siri s examining table…
are not cozy entertainments, but substantial crimes that take us into the thick of political intrigue. The New York Times Book Review In Siri, Cotterill has created a detective as distinctive as Maigret or Poirot. Orlando Sentinel The Soho Press crime series…
has done mystery connoisseurs everywhere a favor by adding Colin Cotterill to its publishing list. The author gives us exotic locations; a world that few of us know well; crisp, intelligent, and often witty writing; and, most of all, a hero unlike any other. The Philadelphia Inquirer Laos, 1975. The Communist Pathet Lao has taken over this former French colony. Dr. Siri Paiboun, a 72 year old Paris trained doctor, is appointed national coroner. Although he has no training for the job, there is no one else; the rest of the educated class has fled. He is expected to come up with the answers the party wants. But crafty and charming Dr. Siri is immune to bureaucratic pressure. At his age, he reasons, what can they do to him? And he knows he cannot fail the dead who come into his care without risk of incurring their boundless displeasure. Eternity could be a long time to have the spirits mad at you. For more information, visit www. colincotterill. com From the Trade Paperback edition.

Thirty-Three Teeth

Praise for Cotterill’s The Coroner s Lunch: This series kickoff is an embarrassment of riches: Holmesian sleuthing, political satire and droll comic study of a prickly late bloomer. Kirkus Reviews starred review The Coroner s Lunch is marvelous. The setting may be unique in Western fiction, and the characters are unique to themselves. Sweet but not sappy, offbeat but not self conscious about it, this book doesn t so much pull you in as open a door and let you walk happily through. Fans of Alexander McCall Smith s books will love this one. S. J. Rozan, author of Absent Friends The Coroner s Lunch is a satisfying feast for the mind. Rebecca Pawel, author of Death of a Nationalist, winner of the 2004 Edgar Award for Best First Novel The national coroner of Laos, Dr. Siri Paiboun, is no respecter of persons or party; at his advanced age he can afford to be independent. With the assistance of his helpers, the mentally re*tarded Mr. Geung and Nurse Dtui Fatty who has dubbed him Super Spirit Doc he elucidates the causes of mysterious deaths. But he also communes with the deposed king, whose special channel to the occult has left him, and attends a conference of shamans called by the Communist government to give the spirits an ultimatum: obey party orders or get out. Colin Cotterill was born in London in 1952. He has taught in Australia, the United States and Japan and has lived in Thailand, on the Burmese border, and in Laos. For the last several years he has worked for UNICEF and local non governmental agencies to prevent child prostitution and to rehabilitate abused children. He lives in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. For more information, visit www. colincotterill. com

Disco for the Departed

Purely entertaining…
. Elements of the ritualistic killings are pretty gross and the spooks can be scary; but as the author gently points out, life would be dreary without a few thrills. The New York Times Book Review Cotterill’s writing is both evocative and educational. Entertainment Weekly Readers who enjoy Eliot Pattison s Asian thrillers…
will find that Cotterill shares the same sardonic view of Asian communism mixed with a touch of mysticism…
a quality that sets the work of both authors apart from most mystery fare. Library Journal starred review Dr. Siri Paiboun is summoned to the mountains of Huaphan Province, where for years the leaders of the current communist government hid in caves, waiting to assume power. Now a major celebration of the new regime is scheduled to take place, but an arm is found protruding from the concrete walk laid from the president s former cave hideout to his new house beneath the cliffs. Siri must supervise the disinterment of the body attached to the arm, identify it, and determine the cause of death. The autopsy provides some surprises, but it is his gifts as a shaman that enable the seventy three year old doctor to discover why the victim was buried alive and identify the killer. Colin Cotterill was born in London and currently lives in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He received the Dilys Award for Thirty Three Teeth, the second mystery in the Dr. Siri Paiboun series. For more information, visit www. colincotterill. com

Anarchy and Old Dogs

A series of terrifically beguiling detective novels…
. Whimsical, more personal stories that feature Siri and an equally memorable set of supporting characters…
. A wry, seasoned, off hand style that has been the secret weapon of this unexpectedly blithe and charming series. Janet Maslin, The New York Times Siri’s lingering idealism, hidden beneath his cynical and often hilarious digs at the government, provide unexpected emotional depth. Entertainment Weekly Think What s Up, Tiger Lily with Mao taking over for Woody Allen. Bloomberg. com Delightful. Publishers Weekly An elderly man has been run down by a logging truck on the street in Vientiane just opposite the post office. His body is delivered to the morgue of Dr. Siri Paiboun, the official and only coroner of Laos. At the age of seventy three, Siri is too old to be in awe of the new communist bureaucrats for whom he now works. Before he can identify the corpse, he must decipher a letter in the man s pocket it is written in invisible ink and in code. He was a blind retired dentist, his widow explains, and the enigmatic letters and numbers describe chess moves, but they are unlike any chess symbols Siri has previously encountered. With the help of his old friend, Civilai, now a senior member of the Laos politburo; Nurse Dtui; Phosy, a police officer; and Aunt Bpoo, a transvestite fortune teller, Siri solves the mystery of the note to the blind dentist and foils a plot to overthrow the government of Laos. For more information, visit www. colincotterill. com

Curse of the Pogo Stick

Cotterill’s stories may glide by on their humor and wonderful characters, but the reason his books come alive, the reason his series continues to be worth reading, is the author’s deep understanding of these people and their beautiful, troubled land. This depth enables him to bring us there for a brief vacation, make us feel, and still keep us laughing. Like Dr. Siri, Colin Cotterill has a touch of magic about him. The Boston Globe Cotterill s approach in Curse of the Pogo Stick so measured and offhand actually achieves a remarkable feat: It cuts through all the never again media saturation genocidal regimes often generate, and it makes us take notice once more. We wind up caring about Cotterill s characters, because they re mostly either decent or at least understandably flawed and therefore human. By avoiding the nastiness and nihilism of noir, they reach a sympathetic, soulful reality writers rarely pull off. Paste Magazine Cotterill s ironic pen is as sharp as ever. Kirkus Reviews Auntie Bpoo, the transvestite fortune teller of Vientiane, Laos, has foretold that the seventy three year old newlywed Dr. Siri and his equally mature bride will have children by the end of the year. When Siri helps Hmong villagers in peril, the prediction comes true. Colin Cotterill, author of five previous books in the Dr. Siri Paiboun series, lives in Chiang Mai, Thailand, with his wife. His books have been Book Sense picks, and he won the Dilys Award for Thirty Three Teeth.

The Merry Misogynist

Praise for the Dr. Siri series: Terrifically beguiling detective novels steeped in local color and history. The New York Times Book Review Like Dr. Siri, Colin Cotterill has a touch of magic about him. The Boston Globe A delightfully fresh and eccentric hero. John Burdett Unpredictable…
. Tragically funny and magically sublime. Entertainment Weekly A crack storyteller and an impressive guide to a little known culture. The Washington Post Book World In poverty stricken 1978 Laos, a man from the city with a truck was somebody, a catch for even the prettiest village virgin. The corpse of one of these bucolic beauties turns up in Dr. Siri’s morgue and his curiosity is piqued. The victim was tied to a tree and strangled, but she had not, as the doctor had expected, been raped. And though the victim had smooth, pale skin over most of her body, her hands and feet were gnarled, callused, and blistered. On a trip to the hinterlands, Siri discovers that many women have been killed in this way. He sets out to investigate this unprecedented phenomenon a serial killer in peaceful Buddhist Laos only to discover when he has identified the murderer that not only pretty maidens are at risk: seventy three year old coroners can be victims too.

Love Songs from a Shallow Grave

Praise for the Dr. Siri series: The consistently fine characterizations of the entire cast are matched by a tightly constructed plot. Booklist Glimpses of everyday life in Laos will appeal to those readers curious about a culture unfamiliar to most Americans. Publishers Weekly Three young Laotian women have died of fencing sword wounds. Each of them had studied abroad in an Eastern bloc country. Before he can complete his investigation, Dr. Siri is lured to Cambodia by an all expenses paid trip. Accused of spying for the Vietnamese, he is imprisoned, beaten, and threatened with death. The Khmer Rouge is relentless, and it is touch and go for the dauntless, seventy four year old national and only coroner of Laos. Colin Cotterill was born in London in 1952 and taught and trained teachers around the world before settling in Thailand. He spent several years in Laos, initially with UNESCO, before he moved on to become involved in child protection in the region and set up a non governmental organization in Phuket. He later moved on to ECPAT, an international organization combating child prostitution and po*rnography. Colin writes and illustrates full time, and lives in Chumphon on the Gulf of Thailand with his wife, Jessi, and a bunch of dogs. He is a Dilys Award winner.

Slash and Burn

Dr. Siri might finally be allowed to retire again. Although he loves his two morgue assistants, he’s tired of being Laos s national coroner, a job he never wanted in the first place. Plus, he s pushing eighty, and wants to spend some time with his wife before his untimely death which has been predicted by the local transvestite fortune teller. But retirement is not in the cards for Dr. Siri after all. He s dragged into one last job for the Lao government: supervising an excavation for the remains of U.S. fighter pilot who went down in the remote northern Lao jungle ten years earlier. The presence of American soldiers in Laos is a hot button issue for both the Americans and the Lao involved, and the search party includes high level politicians and scientists. But one member of the party is found dead, setting off a chain of accidents Dr. Siri suspects are not completely accidental. Everyone is trapped in a cabin in the jungle, and the bodies are starting to pile up. Can Dr. Siri get to the bottom of the MIA pilot s mysterious story before the fortune teller s prediction comes true?

Killed at the Whim of a Hat

When crime reporter Jimm Juree is forced to follow her family from Chiang Mai to a fishing village on the Gulf of Siam, she’s convinced her career is over. Her journalism will surely dwindle to reports on the annual monsoon induced floods, for what crimes could possibly happen in such an out of the way place? Answer: plenty. A local palm oil plantation owner and his worker are excavating a well. They dig down six feet and hit metal. It turns out to be the roof of an old Volkswagen combi, which, once unearthed, is found to contain two skeletons one of them wearing a hat. A monk is murdered in Lang Suan, the nearest town. There is apparently no motive for the killing and no suspects are found. But there are odd connections between this killing and several others. Suddenly Jimm’s new life becomes somewhat more promising and a great deal more dangerous.

Ageing Disgracefully: Short Stories about Atrocious Old People

Ageing Disgracefully is a delightful collection of short stories that takes a humorous and life affirming look at lives of people who, though considerably advanced in years, are still behaving very, very naughtily. With a keen eye for human foibles and a wicked sense of humor, Colin Cotterill has collected and illustrated with words and drawings the colorful lives of numerous atrocious elders found along his life journey, from his old home, England, to his new home, Thailand, with stops in Australia the United States. In Ageing Disgracefully we entered the minds of venerable and not so venerable elderly bank robbers, murderers and serial killers, as well as mere practical jokers, gamblers and perverts, who may remind us of some people we know or live with, or perhaps a person who stares back at us in the mirror!

Damn Near Dead

Hard boiled story collection, featuring original ”geezer noir” tales by Jeff Abbott, Megan Abbott, Charles Ardai, Ray Banks, Mark Billingham, Steve Brewer, Ken Bruen, Milton Burton, Reed Farrel Coleman, Colin Cotterill, Bill Crider, Sean Doolittle, Victor Gischler, Allan Guthrie, John Harvey, Simon Kernick, Laura Lippman, Stuart MacBride, Donna Moore, Zo Sharp, Jenny Siler, Jason Starr, Charlie Stella, Duane Swierczynski, Robert Ward, Sarah Weinman and Dave White.

A Study in Sherlock

BESTSELLING AUTHORS GO HOLMES IN AN IRRESISTIBLE NEW COLLECTION edited by award winning Sherlockians Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger Neil Gaiman. Laura Lippman. Lee Child. These are just three of eighteen superstar authors who provide fascinating, thrilling, and utterly original perspectives on Sherlock Holmes in this one of a kind book. These modern masters place the sleuth in suspenseful new situations, create characters who solve Holmesian mysteries, contemplate Holmes in his later years, fill gaps in the Sherlock Holmes Canon, and reveal their own personal obsessions with the Great Detective. Thomas Perry, for example, has Dr. Watson tell his tale, in a virtuoso work of alternate history that finds President McKinley approaching the sleuth with a disturbing request; Lee Child sends an FBI agent to investigate a crime near today’s Baker Street only to get a twenty first century shock; Jacqueline Winspear spins a story of a plucky boy inspired by the detective to make his own deductions; and graphic artist Colin Cotterill portrays his struggle to complete this assignment in his hilarious The Mysterious Case of the Unwritten Short Story. In perfect tribute comes this delicious collection of twisty, clever, and enthralling studies of a timeless icon. Featuring stories from Alan BradleyTony BroadbentJan BurkeLionel ChetwyndLee ChildColin Cotterill Neil GaimanLaura LippmanGayle Lynds & John SheldonPhillip & Jerry MargolinMargaret MaronThomas PerryS. J. RozanDana StabenowCharles ToddJacqueline Winspear print version only