Burdett’s Thai detective travels to Nepal for this fourth in the series (search my earlier reviews under “Burdett”) and then travels very deep into Tantric Buddhism. The first two-thirds of the novel is way out there psychically, but I suspect the Nepalese monk with the Brooklyn accent and chip on his shoulder is at least as accurate as the drug and illicit gem traders central to the plot. Burdett really hits his stride in the final third when his detective starts speaking directly to readers. It takes real confidence and skill to pull that off effectively. A notch below the first three books in the series, but I’ll read the next one when it comes out.