When a man supposedly dead by suicide years earlier calls you at 2 am, it’s a safe bet your life is going to get very interesting. Considering the dead man calling you at 2 am died in a most un-“self-inflicted” fashion while auditing a bank used by Russian mobsters to launder money … well, your life is going to get very, very interesting.Such is the opening for Laundry Man (A Jack Shepherd crime novel) by Jake Needham (@JakeNeedham), a thriller set mostly in Bangkok, a city that is “part Miami and part Beirut” where semi-retired Western gangsters and spies jostle elbows with government ministers and generals at the Polo Club and go-go bars. Thailand and especially Bangkok, as well as Hong Kong to a lesser extent, become supporting characters in this story much as Norway does for Jo Nesbo’s Inspector Harry Hole books. As protagonist Jack Shepherd — who gave up a high-profile position in a Washington, DC law firm to teach at Chulalongkorn University — begins digging into why a supposedly dead man wants to meet him, the reader will meet a colorful cast including local cop Jello, ex-hit man and bar owner Mango Manny and Phony Frank, whose real occupation is…unclear.The suspense constantly ratchets up as Jack bounces from lead to lead, many of which are red herrings. Something is going on — both Jack and the reader knows that much — but what exactly? How and where does Jack tie into it all? And why does everyone he meets tell Jack to stay out of it, even though their demeanor and actions indicate they don’t believe his claims of innocence?With a title like Laundry Man you’d be right in thinking the story centers on “cleaning” ill-gotten money, but fortunately the techno-speak of international banking doesn’t get too detailed. I say “fortunately” because I’ve never much understood or been interested in high finance in general. In fact, Mr. Needham addresses my feelings, and has given me a new way to view international finance in the future: Why was it that so many Americans look at offshore banking as some sort of occult wizardry? I had a sudden vision of huge airplanes stuffed with microchip importers from San Francisco whizzing endlessly around the globe in search of a fabled and mystical land called Offshore, a place forever beyond the reach of greedy governments, combative creditors, and vengeful ex-wives. I myself have always pictured Offshore as a land ruled by Peter Sellers, but now that he was dead, I imagine that Rowan Atkinson must have taken over the throne. -- Needham, Jake (2011-12-01). LAUNDRY MAN (A Jack Shepherd crime novel) (Kindle Locations 1225-1230). Half Penny Ltd (Hong Kong). Kindle Edition.Exotic locations, colorful characters and a puzzle as murky as one of the Chao Phraya River's tributaries…what’s not to like about that? I enjoyed this story quite a bit, and will be adding to my To Read List both more Jack Shepherd books and Mr. Needham’s Inspector Tay series.
LAUNDRY MAN HITS LIKE A FIST - Needham creates a world of his own in crime fiction. Imagine a man standing in the Bangkok night, listening to the thunder in the distance and a young girl’s voice singing a sad love song, while puffing a Montecristo. “The storm hit like a fist,” he writes. It’s that combination of being in a strange city and powerful sentences that give “Laundry Man” a strenght that comes on top of the story. Like some extra ingredient to make sure the crime story doesn’t become stale. So you got mood and ambiance… and then next thing you know there’s a corpse falling on your shoes when you open your Volvo’s door. That’s Jake Needham allright: jumping straight ahead from a sultry, introvert moment to action-packed fiction. “Laundry Man” is the second Jack Shepherd novel I read and the first in the series – and I like them for what they are: modern times, film-noiresque stories with pace and wit. Yes there’s a Bogart-feel to the central character, and Needham has a touch for referring to famous vig screen movies, not as an easy way out but quite fitting. Obviously “Laundry Man” is about dubious international finance, misty bank activities and criminal organizations, and the author knows what he is doing. That makes this book more than a crime novel – it’s also a bit of an education. Albeit a shocking one. And: with steamed rice, as a newspaper reviewer has noted about the Jack Shepherd series. I’d like to quote the author himself as I did in the opening of this review: “Laundry Man” sort of hits like a fist; a swift, oriental blow in the face. I had the occasional hit myself, stuff I didn’t see coming. In this genre, that’s a good thing. See what you think.
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THE LAUNDRY MAN, by Jake Needham, is a first rate intrigue-thriller set in Bangkok and the first in the Jack Shepherd series based in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Needham captures the setting in a way only someone living there or having spent considerable time there can. THE LAUNDRY MAN pounds with steam heat and neon as Shepherd covers exotic streets and alleys, bars, cafes and restaurants and up to Hong Kong for a quick meeting and a ferry across the harbor. Shepherd, wise to the ways of Far Eastern finance and corporate legal matters, is recruited to assist an old colleague to clean up some tangled financial affairs. What he uncovers leads to some powerful people doing shady business under the radar. It's a delicate balance for Shepherd, who walks a thin line between loyalty, his own safety, and blowing the lid on an international scheme with explosive repercussions. THE LAUNDRY MAN sets a steady pace and walks the reader through the life of Shepherd, a college professor by day and a man with a conscience facing tough choices. Highly recommended.
—Kurt Taylor
I finally finished reading Laundry Man. To be honest, I never really read much into the mystery/crime/thriller genre so I was unsure of what to expect. In spite of this, I kept an open mind.Set in Thailand, Jack Shepard is a college professor going about his daily business until he gets embroiled in a big plot involving mobsters, China, and lots of dirty money. Sounds simple? It isn't. The plot is quite intricate and keep taking many twists throughout the story. This doesn't detract from the work in any way. While a neophyte or hack may have made this book into one big mess, Jake Needham doesn't do this. He definitely knows what he's doing, what he's talking about, and what he's writing.This is a book worth picking up! I'm glad I did and I plan to read about the further adventures of Shepard.
—Max
So, here I was, having just finished my first Jake Needham--The Ambassador’s Wife--and not quite satisfied had to go for another. Thus, The Laundry Man. Not Detective Sam Tay of Singapore this time, but “retired” international financier Jack Shepherd, now a professor at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. He gets a call from a (supposedly) dead man to open the book, and away we go. Shepherd is a very different character from the socially challenged Sam Tay. He’s gregarious, athletic, has a gorgeous and talented female partner and all kinds of connections hither and yon. It’s the connections that get him in trouble. The call from the dead man concerns his role in a money laundering scheme in which he was never involved. Except he is. And there are dozens of organizations involved, ranging all the way from China to Burma to the White House. Sorting all this out and staying alive and/or out of prison takes a whole book and a lot of trial and error and compels you, the reader, to keep soaring through the adventure till it gets sorted out. As in The Ambassador’s Wife, Needham lets you think things are clear more then once, then confounds the situation yet again, and you don’t know till nearly the end how and why what plays out plays out. Deftly done and as entertaining a thriller as you’ll find around.
—Carl Brush
