Disco for the Departed

It's the 1970s in the People's Democratic Republic of Laos, and with the Communist bosses coming to town for a jamboree everything needs to be tidy. Which is why reluctant national coroner Dr Siri Paiboun finds himself in the mountains of Huaphan Province. Inconveniently, there's a mummified arm protruding from a concrete path.

Questions Siri has to answer: What is a Cuban black magic cult doing in the mountains of Laos? Does the handsome officer have the hots for his assistant Nurse Dtui? Why does an infernal disco start up each night just as he begins to nod off? And why, why do the spirits insist on talking to him?

Colin Cotterill's cranky hero and his delightful cast take us on a mysterious and hilarious journey into another time and place.

Praise for Disco for the Departed:

Cotterill is one of the best things to happen to crime fiction in years.'

Age

‘Tragically funny and magically sublime.'

Entertainment Weekly

'Siri's greatest assets are his charm, persistence and dry humour...an unexpected pleasure.'

Guardian

'Cotterill's books are a lovely fusion of Lao history, Buddhist spirituality and creaking Communist politics, acted out by a cast of most endearing characters with great verve and irreverent humour.'

Adelaide Advertiser

'A crack storyteller.'

Washington Post

'Cotterill has a wonderful sense of farce.'

Sydney Morning Herald