June 2009 Debut of the Month.
Told in the first person by a freelance journalist, this is an investigation into the circumstances that led an American anthropologist to be jailed for murder in Thailand. It is a fascinating, multi-stranded, informative story. The detail of missionary work, primitive tribes, life in Thailand and other eastern areas are presented as non-fiction, complete with footnotes, but it’s a tale of jealousy, grief and murder, completely enthralling.
Comparison: Tash Aw, Amitav Ghosh, Geoff Ryman.

Mischa is a freelance reporter for an English-language newspaper in Thailand. One drunken evening he hears a story about the suicide of Martiya van der Leun, a charismatic American anthropologist who was serving a life sentence for murder. What begins as mild curiosity in the case rapidly becomes an obsession, as Mischa seeks to reconstruct the details of Martiya’s life – and death.
| Primary Genre | Modern and Contemporary Fiction |
| Recommendations: |
Mischa is a freelance reporter for an English-language newspaper in Thailand. One drunken evening he hears a story about the suicide of Martiya van der Leun, a charismatic American anthropologist who was serving a life sentence for murder.
Fieldwork features in the following genres: Modern and Contemporary Fiction, Debut Books of the Month, eBooks of the Month, General Fiction, Fiction, Recommendations
Paperback. £7.19, down from the £7.99 cover price. Not Available.
Fieldwork was written by Mischa Berlinski and published by Atlantic Books
Fieldwork has 320 pages
£7.19, reduced from £7.99. Not Available.