A Nail Through the Heart introduces
Poke Rafferty, a "rough-travel" writer
who has settled in Bangkok with a
former go-go dancer named Rose,
whom he's trying to marry, and an
eight-year-old street child named Miaow,
whom he wants to adopt. His Looking for
Trouble books (Looking for Trouble in Indonesia,
Looking for Trouble in the Philippines, and Looking
for Trouble in Thailand) are designed for travelers
who want to go beyond the temples and tourist
traps and experience life at street level – including the
streets no travel guide ever mentions. Writing these b
ooks requires skills that come in handy when life in Bangkok
gets rough for Poke, as it frequently does.
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Emmy-award-winning composer Stephen Cohn has written a musical "sound track"
to A Nail Through the Heart. Click here to listen to it and to learn more about it. |
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Read a sample chapter, and listen to the score Stephen wrote to accompany it. |
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I'm happy to say that critical reaction to the book was extremely positive. Here's a partial roundup:
Booksense.com -- MONTHLY PICK
In the first of a truly remarkable series. Hallinan takes you to Thailand with a vengeance. This one of the best novels I have read in years, and it will be a true, long-lasting favorite."
Kirkus Reviews:
Mystery writer Hallinan scores big-time with a fast-moving thriller set in Thailand . . . Dark, often funny and ultimately enthralling.
Booklist:
. . . a compelling new protagonist . . . . The narrative is deeply felt. If this opens a new series, Hallinan is off to a surefooted start with a supporting cast (including Poke’s precocious, pugnacious, almost-daughter Miaow) well worth getting to know.
Publishers Weekly:
Excellent . . . thriller from Hallinan . . the rich depictions of Bangkok's seedy side recall John Burdett's visceral mysteries. (July)
New York Times Bestselling Author John Lescroart:
"Don't miss your chance to read A NAIL THROUGH THE HEART before it starts winning all its awards. . . . every page shimmers with life and light. Hallinan's is a writer's writer, and this is great stuff!"
New York Times Bestselling AuthorT. Jefferson Parker:
“A Nail Through the Heart is a haunting novel that takes place way out on the fringe of the moral landscape. It’s fast, bold, disturbing and beautifully written. Hallinan is terrific.” --T. Jefferson Parker
www.mysterycrimefictionsuite101.com
One of the best mysteries of 2007.
www.popmatters.com – MONTHLY PICK
It is the respect he has for his characters that ultimately make reading A Nail Through the Heart more than just a quick and scary ride through the seamier side of Bangkok. In a refreshing deviation from the norm, Timothy Hallinan’s real concern lies not with the crafting of a well-paced thriller (which he’s done quite successfully), but with turning the classic hardboiled rugged individualist detective of American noir into a man whose greatest concern is the formation of a family. It's enough to make Raymond Chandler roll over in his grave
www.perfecttext.com
. . . brilliantly conceived and beautifully rendered . . . artful, compelling and entertaining . . . . Kudos to Hallinan for an exceptional story.
www.bestsellersworld.com
Timothy Hallinan is a tremendous writing talent . . . . I highly recommend this book and look forward to the next book by Timothy Hallinan.
www.fullmoon.typepad.com/books
This one's awesome. Five stars from me.
www.popsyndicate.com
A Nail Through the Heart is a page turner and should be one book people pick up this summer. It’s the closest you’ll get to going to a strange land without actually visiting. Dark, thrilling and unforgettable, A Nail Through the Heart is a journey you won’t soon forget.
www.barnesandnoble.com
To say that this is a must read or a page turner, would be a grave injustice. For these catch phrases are used far too often to be attached to a novel such as this. I highly recommend this novel and anxiously await the second in the series! Happy Reading!
www.bellaonline.com
A Nail through the Heart is a haunting read. The author goes deeper than the usual thriller in giving you a sense of Bangkok . . . you can hear the clamor of different languages, and feel the sticky press of the crowds under the steamy sun. Rafferty is a good character: cautious, hopeful, and often justifiably frightened. Hallinan is an author to watch, and A Nail through the Heart gets four stars out of five
www.successtalk.com
Beautifully crafted, relentlessly paced, A Nail Through the Heart is an exciting and enticing read that will leave readers hungry for more from the gifted Timothy Hallinan
www.nightsandweekends.com
. . . beautifully written – a memorable and thought-provoking read. Dark and captivating . . . It’ll leave you wanting to read more from this talented author.
www.themorningnews.org
A few writers have trolled Southeast Asia to serve up some thrilling, heart-racing fiction, and Timothy Hallinan—who has spent a fair amount of time on the ground in Cambodia and Thailand—has the institutional knowledge and chops to deliver a fine and entertaining story. . . . The prose is electric and visceral, advancing the story powerfully and sucking you into its wake.
www.tcm-ca.com
This is the kind of book that makes you immediately start looking for others by the same author. It is flat-out excellent and very tightly written.
www.newbookreviews.org
A Nail Through the Heart is a fast paced, rollicking who-done-it with unforgettable characters and a completely original plot. Timothy Hallinan is an articulate and exciting storyteller complete with a sharp wit that will leave you wanting more!
www.brownbookloft.com
Rich with detail and sympathetic characters, A Nail Through the Heart takes the reader into the heart of a community that is barely mentioned in whitewashed society. . . . Peopled with prostitutes, street urchins, thieves and pornographers . . . Yet it never spirals down into hopeless despair. Poke, Rose, Miaow and even the emotionally scarred young boy nicknamed Superman who briefly comes into their lives, manage to find the good amongst the garbage and live a life of hope for the future.
This book, the first in a series of novels from a very talented writer, is based on the author's own experiences in southeast Asia.
www.reviewingtheevidence.com
. . . a beautiful yet terrifying book that illustrates the humanity and hatred that people show to each other. This novel is well worth reading.
www.lvrofbooks.blogspot.com
Please pick it up and give it a try. You will not regret it.
www.mysterylovers.com
A welcome return for Timothy Hallinan in this compelling and original novel . . . Hallinan’s presentation of the teeming world of Bangkok is spot-on and his affection for the characters shines through every page;
www.kevinholtsberry.com
A Nail Through the Heart is a captivating and emotional novel. It is both an exciting expatriate detective novel and an exploration of the power of love and family in the midst of darkness and chaos. I look forward to getting to know Poke Rafferty better as the series continues. |
