The Feng Shui Detective

**

A bestselling English-language author based in Hong Kong, Vittachi stands to become a lot better known in the U.S. with this soft-boiled mystery peopled by quirky, engaging characters, the first in a new crime series. Set in Singapore and featuring C.F. Wong, a "geomancer" or feng shui master, this lighthearted novel blends, blurs and contrasts the three main ethnic groups of the Asian city-state-Chinese, Malays and Indians. Along with his cohorts, Madame Xu and Dilip Kenneth Sinha (both psychics), the gifted, if often reluctant, detective gets drawn into a plot to save a young girl who has an extraordinarily bleak future, psychically speaking. Wong is dragged to Australia to solve the case by his intern, Joyce McQuinnie, a British-Australian teenager forced on him by a valued client. McQuinnie makes a great foil for his crankiness and obsession with order. The author, unfortunately, sometimes vies for the big laugh with groan-worthy broad humor, usually revolving around someone's accent or lack of understanding of English. Overall, however, his love for Singapore and its distinctive internationalism shines through. Vittachi's unique worldview infuses his writing with vitality and gives his characters a charming believability. American readers should enjoy the virtual vacation this book provides. 
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This first entry in a series featuring Singapore feng shui master C. F. Wong draws most of its energy from Wong's interaction with his various clients as well as his encounters with brash Australian intern Joyce and his bossy, overly made-up office manager, Winnie. Wong's specialty is applying the principles of feng shui to crime scenes. Nothing pleases the diminutive Asian more than sniffing out clues based on how the room feels, smells, or looks. Stopping only to work on his book, Some Gleanings of Oriental Wisdom, Wong investigates a kidnapping and a mysterious fire some believe was started by a dead man. Liberally quoting bits of wisdom from his book and trying vainly to understand the more modern aspects of Singaporean society (such as coffee shops and night clubs), Wong emerges as a thoroughly appealing mystery hero. Vittachi also populates the story with an assortment of hilarious New Age characters, such as psychic Madame Xu and bomoh (or mystic) Amran Ismail. Reading this charming, funny, feel-good story is bound to result in a huge boost of good karma. Jenny McLarin
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