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Jack Shepherd #3
A World of Trouble
Jack Shepherd was sick of Washington politics, sick of corporate law, and even a little sick of himself. So he hit the road looking for a new start, made a couple of wrong turns, and somehow wound up in Hong Kong. Now he needs a job, and being General Chalerm Kitnarock's lawyer is a job, so he takes it.
Shepherd could certainly have done a lot worse for himself. Charlie Kitnarok is the world's ninety-eighth richest man. But he's also a former prime minister of Thailand now living in exile in Dubai. When he's not making money, he's plotting his return to political power.
For Shepherd, that could be a real problem. Thailand already has a prime minister, and she's a woman with whom Shepherd once had a brief relationship. It will get particularly messy if, as Shepherd suspects, Charlie is smuggling arms to his supporters and intends to use the Thai army to seize control of the country. Can Shepherd keep his two friends from destroying each other and prevent Thailand from sliding into chaos?
Thailand is hurtling closer and closer to a bloody civil war. And as unlikely as it may sound, Jack Shepherd is probably the only person on earth who can stop it.
Shepherd could certainly have done a lot worse for himself. Charlie Kitnarok is the world's ninety-eighth richest man. But he's also a former prime minister of Thailand now living in exile in Dubai. When he's not making money, he's plotting his return to political power.
For Shepherd, that could be a real problem. Thailand already has a prime minister, and she's a woman with whom Shepherd once had a brief relationship. It will get particularly messy if, as Shepherd suspects, Charlie is smuggling arms to his supporters and intends to use the Thai army to seize control of the country. Can Shepherd keep his two friends from destroying each other and prevent Thailand from sliding into chaos?
Thailand is hurtling closer and closer to a bloody civil war. And as unlikely as it may sound, Jack Shepherd is probably the only person on earth who can stop it.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
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About the author
Jake Needham
44 books389 followersJAKE NEEDHAM received the Barry Award at Bouchercon 2024, the world's largest convention of mystery readers, for BEST PAPERBACK MYSTERY OF 2024. He is a three-time Barry Award nominee, as well as a nominee for the International Thriller Writers' award for BEST PAPERBACK THRILLER OF THE YEAR.
Needham is an American screen and television writer who has lived in Thailand for over thirty years. He started writing crime novels when he realized he really didn't like movies and television all that much. Since then, he has published fifteen popular mysteries and thrillers in two different series — The Inspector Samuel Tay Novels, and the Jack Shepherd Novels — as well as the international bestseller, THE BIG MANGO.
"Jake Needham is Asia's most stylish and atmospheric writer of crime fiction," says the Singapore Straits Times. "Jake Needham is Michael Connelly with steamed rice," says the Bangkok Post.
Needham is an American screen and television writer who has lived in Thailand for over thirty years. He started writing crime novels when he realized he really didn't like movies and television all that much. Since then, he has published fifteen popular mysteries and thrillers in two different series — The Inspector Samuel Tay Novels, and the Jack Shepherd Novels — as well as the international bestseller, THE BIG MANGO.
"Jake Needham is Asia's most stylish and atmospheric writer of crime fiction," says the Singapore Straits Times. "Jake Needham is Michael Connelly with steamed rice," says the Bangkok Post.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
April 6, 2012
This is the third book in Needham's Jack Shepherd series. It follows KILLING PLATO at the end of which Shepherd was fired by the Thai university where he had been teaching for getting involved in a very public controversy which the university saw as an embarrassment to Thailand. In A WORLD OF TROUBLE, Jack Shepherd is back to practicing law, back in the Land of Smiles, and happily more cynical than ever.
We meet Jack and his client, a wealthy former prime minister of Thailand who was ousted on corruption charges and is now living in splendid exile in Dubai. Charlie Kitnarok is a figure who bears more than a passing resemblance to Thaksin Shinawatra, who really IS a wealthy former prime minister of Thailand ousted on corruption charges and is now living in Dubai. There is an assassination attempt in Dubai and Jack saves his client, but Charlie manipulates the outcome, serving his own purpose. Charlie's money needs to be moved out of Thailand. Money laundering and an understanding of Thai motives is why he has chosen Jack Shepherd to do it. There was much here about about the political and personal power struggles that underlie everything in Thailand and Needham uses the color-coded street battles that have wracked the country for several years now to sketch in the tension that has become part of everyday life in Thailand. There is much truth here in between the lines of fiction. For example, the excuse Shepherd uses to get Charlie's money out of Thailand is that his client wants to buy a basketball team in LA. That's really classic Needham, very much tongue in cheek. Didn't Thaksin buy a football team in the UK? Just asking…
You won't find the same enthusiasm and wonder about Thailand that you found in Needham's first novel, THE BIG MANGO, but will you feel a depth and a maturity. The honeymoon is over, and now Shepherd knows the ropes. You get the feeling that this may be Needham's swan song on Thailand. He has has staked his writing career on South East Asia, only to discover that the Thais don't really care much for foreigners. I've noticed that this book isn't getting nearly as much air play as it should in Thailand. My guess is that any mention of the country's political upheavals by a foreigner is just too controversial for Thais to accept. That's a shame. They might learn something they didn't know about their own country by reading A WORLD OF TROUBLE.
This may well be the last of the Shepherd novels. If it is, I will miss them a great deal. Read this one and Needham will have you hooked, too.
We meet Jack and his client, a wealthy former prime minister of Thailand who was ousted on corruption charges and is now living in splendid exile in Dubai. Charlie Kitnarok is a figure who bears more than a passing resemblance to Thaksin Shinawatra, who really IS a wealthy former prime minister of Thailand ousted on corruption charges and is now living in Dubai. There is an assassination attempt in Dubai and Jack saves his client, but Charlie manipulates the outcome, serving his own purpose. Charlie's money needs to be moved out of Thailand. Money laundering and an understanding of Thai motives is why he has chosen Jack Shepherd to do it. There was much here about about the political and personal power struggles that underlie everything in Thailand and Needham uses the color-coded street battles that have wracked the country for several years now to sketch in the tension that has become part of everyday life in Thailand. There is much truth here in between the lines of fiction. For example, the excuse Shepherd uses to get Charlie's money out of Thailand is that his client wants to buy a basketball team in LA. That's really classic Needham, very much tongue in cheek. Didn't Thaksin buy a football team in the UK? Just asking…
You won't find the same enthusiasm and wonder about Thailand that you found in Needham's first novel, THE BIG MANGO, but will you feel a depth and a maturity. The honeymoon is over, and now Shepherd knows the ropes. You get the feeling that this may be Needham's swan song on Thailand. He has has staked his writing career on South East Asia, only to discover that the Thais don't really care much for foreigners. I've noticed that this book isn't getting nearly as much air play as it should in Thailand. My guess is that any mention of the country's political upheavals by a foreigner is just too controversial for Thais to accept. That's a shame. They might learn something they didn't know about their own country by reading A WORLD OF TROUBLE.
This may well be the last of the Shepherd novels. If it is, I will miss them a great deal. Read this one and Needham will have you hooked, too.
September 26, 2012
Whether or not you are familiar with the main protagonist, Jack Shepherd, whether or not you are familiar with the stamping grounds in Thailand, Hong Kong and Dubai, if you like your crime fiction fast and twisting you have to look no further than Jake Needham's great pacy novel. The dialogue is superb, and is sprinkled with some outstanding throwaway lines. The lead-in chapters are a great warm up act as the worldy-wise and at times worldly-weary business lawyer Shepherd makes decisions on his coat tails. The authenticity of the locations and the characters you'll encounter in each city is an uncanny reflection of how it is in so-called real life. It's often said of Needham's books that it's difficult sometimes to discern what's fiction and what's not. That adds all the more spice to the story. Treat yourself and start following this author's output. Magnificent reading.
July 23, 2015
Just couldn't get into this at all. The story required way too much suspension of disbelief and just plodded along. I finished it just to see if it would ever get any better and it didn't. Sometimes with the Kindle freebies you get what you pay for.
July 16, 2019
Like his books. This one is set in Hong Kong and Dubai —- always interesting!! Charlie Kitnarok is his friend who has hired Jack to do his investing for him. Charlie is living in Dubai and Jack lives in Hong Kong. All seems legit until approached by Len Keur (FBI supposedly) who is trying to find out what Charlie is really into with his partner Robert Darling. Jack goes to Pete Logan to see if he knows what the FBI is checking into on his friend Charlie.
Bangkok seems to be heading for disaster when their new PM is murdered. Kathleen’s Srisophon (head of Bangkok’s Intelligence Agency NIA) is named as temp PM. Many want Charlie K back as PM and so does Charlie want the job.
Ends up that the US CIA is trying to keep Charlie out of Thailand and Keur works for them. As usual Jack gets too involved before he finds out about the CIA involvement, and ends up killing Keur when he tries to kill both Jack and Charlie. Pete Logan to the rescue gets Jack to hospital to save his life , and to get him to “forget” that he was involved in a CIA murder plot. Score another against the CIA!
Bangkok seems to be heading for disaster when their new PM is murdered. Kathleen’s Srisophon (head of Bangkok’s Intelligence Agency NIA) is named as temp PM. Many want Charlie K back as PM and so does Charlie want the job.
Ends up that the US CIA is trying to keep Charlie out of Thailand and Keur works for them. As usual Jack gets too involved before he finds out about the CIA involvement, and ends up killing Keur when he tries to kill both Jack and Charlie. Pete Logan to the rescue gets Jack to hospital to save his life , and to get him to “forget” that he was involved in a CIA murder plot. Score another against the CIA!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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June 3, 2024Although he's now living in a borrowed apartment in Hong Kong, Jack is persuaded to return to Thailand to help move some money for a client who had become a friend. But it's no ordinary client but a General who is planning to return to Bangkok as the Prime Minister.
There are demonstrations on the streets but more worrying is the info that the General 's business partner appears to be bringing guns into the country to arm the protesters. And the transport is being arranged by a company that's known to be a front for the CIA.
There are demonstrations on the streets but more worrying is the info that the General 's business partner appears to be bringing guns into the country to arm the protesters. And the transport is being arranged by a company that's known to be a front for the CIA.
May 3, 2023
It was a fine story, resembling real events that unfortunately happen in multiple places of the world, where separatists want to gain independence of the a region of a country, they cause uproar, get weapons illegally (from tramps like russia) and terrorize the government. Here events happen mostly in Thailand, and the lawyer Jack Shepherd finds himself in the middle of bad events. The thriller (not quite a detective story) has a good writing style and an engaging plot.
June 1, 2018
Jack Shepherd tries to stay out of politics. But his friends have other ideas. One side he has his friend Charlie, the former Thai prime minister, who was voted out of office and in exile. The other is Kate, his sometime girlfriend, and current prime minister. He balances his views while travelling from Hong Kong, Dubai, and Bangkock to keep things right.
October 10, 2021
While the books in this series are quite low brow I do enjoy them for some reason. Maybe I enjoy the familiarity of the places in Bangkok- I guess I’ll try the next one set in Macao and see if my enjoyment level differs.
The pacing in these books is good and I enjoy them before bedtime as I don’t find myself nodding off so quickly as I do with some other more challenging books.
The pacing in these books is good and I enjoy them before bedtime as I don’t find myself nodding off so quickly as I do with some other more challenging books.
June 17, 2018
Interesting characters and exotic locations
I love reading novels with interesting characters and Jack Shepherd fits the bill. He's both smart and flawed and travels in a world most people will never get to experience.
I love reading novels with interesting characters and Jack Shepherd fits the bill. He's both smart and flawed and travels in a world most people will never get to experience.
December 23, 2017
Good book
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so. Shelley MA
October 22, 2018
Another Winner
Jack Shepherd is haphazardly growing to be a find character in my reading world. My thanks to the writer for creating him.
Jack Shepherd is haphazardly growing to be a find character in my reading world. My thanks to the writer for creating him.
February 25, 2021
Another great read by Mr Needham
My new favorite author. Needham has great stories with good action and plenty of twists. Read any of his Back Shepherd and you'll be hooked too.
My new favorite author. Needham has great stories with good action and plenty of twists. Read any of his Back Shepherd and you'll be hooked too.
March 4, 2023
The character continued to develop
June 10, 2023
My second. A fun read, no surprises, but enjoyable. One of those novels you can read once, put aside, and no need to reread.
June 24, 2023
Jack just seems to follow trouble. He has one client and of course it spells nothing but trouble. It’s a great and must read novel. I can hardly wait for #4.
December 6, 2023
Great story, love this series. Being familiar with the locations helps immensely.
April 14, 2024
Whilst this is fiction, it gives an insight to the geopolitics of Thailand. Shepherd is stuck in the middle. Where do his loyalties lie? Who can he trust?
May 24, 2013
Part of the fun of crime novels probably lies in these three words: location, location, location. Every serialized or stand-alone novel distinguishes itself by where it's taking the reader. Jake Needham occupies a unique position because of his extensive knowledge of the middle and far east, and that makes "A World Of Trouble" a unique offer. Get ready to travel to Dubai, Hong Kong, Bangkok and Phuket for intrige and action. Obviously politics play an important role here and boy do they differ from what you would get in New York or Berlin. I'm a reader of many kinds of fiction, from J.M. Coetzee and J.G. Ballard to Lee Child an Jake Needham. I can appreciate the crime genre for what I think it is: true escapism with sometimes a little extra thrown in. Jake Needham certainly succeeds at both; I had a good old fashioned escape with Jack Shepherd (this is actually the third Shepherd novel, but the first Needham I've read) and I also got a nice inside look at a bit of politics in Dubai and Thailand - though I cannot really judge the accuracy. Jack Shepherd is regular guy who is no hero, and who has a hard time figuring out what the powers that be are up to. This is stuff I can relate to. Shepherd is unlike a guy like Jack Reacher who seems to know and fix everything (that's entertaining too), he's primarily stumbling around trying to fix messes, or worse: create them. On the other hand: he's very good as a finance guy. He knows the tricksand he knows his way around. The dialogues are fine, they are witty. The story takes off powerfully and keeps turning and twisting till the very end. I am not for talking about the plot in a review - please read the publisher's summary - so suffice it to say there's some political upheaval in Thailand going on and the main protagonist gets caught in the action when an ousted Thai hot shot living in Dubai seems to be involved in some pretty dark scheming. "A World Of Trouble" is a fine crime novel and after reading it I'm in the mood for some more Jake Needham soon. See what you think.
October 9, 2012
I've read all of Jake Needham's novels. This, his latest, is probably the best (definitely the best Jack Shepherd novel.) It's also the scariest. Jack Shepherd is in a darker place and the events of the novel have serious consequences not only for a few characters, but an entire country or even region. Many of the events in A World of Trouble eerily had real-life parallels. It actually hit a little too close to home as I live in Thailand. But don't get me wrong, this is still classic Jake Needham- lots of action and believeable characters you can't help but root for.
September 12, 2012
I found A WORLD OF TROUBLE by Jake Needham kept me on the edge. Loved the complexities of wondering if some of the characters are truly the bad guys or masquerading as CIA in order to fulfill that character's personal agenda. Makes a reader wonder just who protagonist Jack can trust, in fact Jack refers to "trusting no one." Greatly enjoyed his views of S.E. Asia & Dubai.
The Dark Horse of Shanghai
The Dark Horse of Shanghai
April 26, 2015
Teaser
Needham can write entertaining dialogue but his characters never seem to turn into 3 dimensional people. Plotwise this has some intrigue...too much perhaps with no real chance to make even possible sense of it but the ending is quite the easy way out for Mr. Needham. I found it unsatisfying.
Needham can write entertaining dialogue but his characters never seem to turn into 3 dimensional people. Plotwise this has some intrigue...too much perhaps with no real chance to make even possible sense of it but the ending is quite the easy way out for Mr. Needham. I found it unsatisfying.
October 4, 2013
Another very good effort by Needham. I enjoy the locales. Much better than a South Chicago novel.
However, this novel pushed the envelope on believability. While an enjoyable read, it didn't grab me like "Mango".
Overall, worth the read for the price.
However, this novel pushed the envelope on believability. While an enjoyable read, it didn't grab me like "Mango".
Overall, worth the read for the price.
July 1, 2012
This should be a movie or a TV series. Loved the main character and the settings in the Middle East and Asia.
February 9, 2013
Love the twists and turns. Also his sense of humor.
November 11, 2013
I had read the book that comes before and really liked them both. It takes place in Thailand and Dubai so that was interesting. The politics of the area I think was interesting.
December 7, 2013
I have liked other books by this author better.
August 4, 2016
Fascinating look at several countries, lots of interesting characters and a well developed plot. I really enjoyed this! I'm looking forward to working my way through the rest of Jake's books.
March 24, 2015
I love how Needham can take what is essentially a tax lawyer and put him on the edge of controlling a revolution and make it all believable. Brilliant
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews