Fieldwork

Description

Set in Thailand, this is a brilliantly original and page-turning first novel of anthropologists, missionaries, demon possession, sexual taboos, murder, and one obsessed young American reporter. When his girlfriend takes a job in Thailand, Mischa goes along for the ride, planning only to enjoy himself as much as possible. But when he hears about the suicide of a young woman, Martiya van der Leun, in the Thai prison where she was serving a life sentence for murder, what begins as mild curiosity becomes an obsession. It is clear that Martiya was guilty, but what was it that led her to kill?

Reviews

"'This is storytelling of the highest quality: richly entertaining, intelligent and anchored in a deep sense of humanity.' Tash Aw, Guardian 'Such an addictive page-turner that I nearly missed my stop on the bus... Mischa builds a picture of [Martina's] life, layer by fascinating layer.' The Times 'Lush in its landscapes, dense in its ideas, always startlingly nimble and witty, this Thailand-set first novel performs some strange upcountry magic of its own. Somehow, it transforms the anguish of expat anthropologists into a cracking adventure... Berlinksi never stints on the ethnographic back-story - a risk in clumsier hands, but an enrichment in such zestful company.' Boyd Tonkin, Independent 'Riveting' Financial Times 'A rare few [books] are so exceptionally good you deliberately read them slowly, deliberately put them down to prolong the pleasure of picking them up again later. For me, Fieldwork comes into this last category.' Oxford Times 'A killer novel... A great story... You can't stop reading.' Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly 'Gripping and entertaining... Exuberant and inventive.' Hilary Mantel, New York Review of Books"

Author description

Mischa Berlinski was born in New York in 1973. He studied classics at the University of California at Berkeley and at Columbia University. He has worked as a journalist in Thailand.