Serpentine: Charles Sobhraj's Reign of Terror from Europe to South Asia

Just finished reading this book by Tommy Thompson and keen to read everything else written by him. I had already done my google-research on Sobhraj years ago and watched all the documentaries on him, but it's only after you this book that the deeply-twisted-perverted Sobhraj character makes clear sense. One has to marvel at the efforts which Tommy undertook to research Sobhraj's background, his family, his times in prison, his letters, his "friends" dispersed across the continents. Though deep in rigor and bind, it's an easy deeply engaging read. Even the last bit of the book where he outlays the court proceedings against Sobhraj in India, his attention to detail and depth of understanding are illuminating and humbling to even an Indian like me. There are some trivial factual errors (for instance India won independence in 47 not 48) but the story holds true and captured in an easy 550 pages is money and time very well spent.

This book covers the life and murders of a serial killer and we also see the corruption of the prison and legal system in India and other countries in Asia. It's educational in that the reader sees what is normal in that system and is so entirely different from what we expect in the US. I was amazed at how the killer could read and persuade people to join him and participate in his murders and other crimes, Naïve young Americans and Europeans would get involved with him, be arrested and languish in prison under dreadful conditions while he bribed his way to relative luxury.

I read this in almost 1 sitting - it’s well written and compelling. Things I didn’t love: Moslem when Muslim is more common. Katmandu instead of Kathmandu. Heading “East to Pakistan or West to Burma” when the directions are opposite. Shaking one’s head to agree, when shaking is normally negative and nodding is to agree. These things made me think the author’s first language isn’t English, which makes the book even more remarkable. The prologue was very long, which nearly lost me, but after that, the book rockets along and the prologue is drawn back into the text. I also don’t understand the time frame. The book ends prematurely if it was written in 2016 as advertised. There are at least another 5 chapters to be written following the end of the book. I suspect it was written in the late 70’s or 80’s, or is the author planning a sequel? It would be welcomed. Some details, such as diary notes or letters, needed a footnote to indicate if they were based on reality or fictionalized. What I loved: The detail, the fast pace, the vocabulary of the author, the colour he brought to the countries and people. It’s a fantastic piece of work, well recommended.

Powerful because the killer is like a snake that extends its reach to several parts of the world. For crime books occupies the upper levels of crime writing. This Mr. Thomas Thompson was the best of the best. I also have read Blood and Money for which he won a prestigious award and that book was definitely a masterpiece of the genre. The trail this killer walked, the victims found along the way, his entourage, the exotic locations, his gradual deterioration into the monster he became or perhaps always was make for a fine crime book. First of all it worth to note this is a large book, with many pages that does not disappoint. I think that Mr. Thompson was one of the greatest of his time. The tale is scary in that once again people does not suspect evil is in their midst, specially with a salesman of that caliber. An anguished, tortured personality that in the end blossom into this really scary human being. Serpentine is one of the best books on crime I have ever read and I am willing to say is on the top 5 of all times. This guy could write, his style and methods a true example of what a journalist is supposed to achieve while telling a very dramatic story. A great book and now I think that 5 Stars is the result of this reading experience. Perhaps attributed to the sad part of my title: The author apparently died as a result of writing this book, some kind of lethal virus contracted while spending time in India researching the story. That is why, if anyone deserves a 5 Star rating, Mr. Thompson definitely does. Upon finishing the book I was curious as to what else he had written, ready to buy whatever else he had and I found out about his passing. Incredible ending to an incredible story. Powerful and Sad. One of the very great writers of true crime, what a sad loss that was. Serpentine, then, becomes the last of his works. This guy knew how to write and after reading chapters of the places Charles, the killer, had lived in, like India, Vietnam, France, etc, etc, I could almost understand how easy it would be to eat or drink something in those unsanitary locations (surely not France for they do cook and have a fine reputation as a civilized place) and unsuspectingly loose his life. What a book and what a writer, truly an above average writer. Powerful and Sad, Serpentine has it all. Crime reporting at its best and that is no lie. 5 Glowing Stars for a promising writer that succumbed while researching what turned out to be his last work.

This book would have been more interesting if it had been significantly shorter. There was much more detail about the people and events than necessary, making the book seem to drag on and on. I kept looking back at the title to be sure it said it was about a serial killer, because there were zero murders for the first 60% of the book. I gave it three stars because it was about a frighteningly charming psychopath who was exceedingly effective at his game, and I learned a lot from it. I say frightening because I've been in situations during foreign travel that could easily have turned lethal if the people involved had been murderers rather than just hustlers. Bottom line, don't eat or drink in the presence of a charming person you just met, and be very suspicious of anyone who asks your travel plans and then says 'I'm going there too! Let's go together!' (Better yet, don't tell them your plans.) The book is old enough that it ends without the reader knowing what happened to the killer; you have to go on the internet to find out. (Hint; he's not at large.)

This book is flat out awesome. Let me say this: it's 639 pages and I finished it in four days! Believe you me, I'm no speed reader and I didn't skip a single sentence. At work-I was reading, at home-I was reading, at red lights-I was reading, long past bedtime-I was reading, supposed to go to the gym-no time for that I must finish book. I've read dozens of true crime novels about some of the most notorious characters in history and none of their stories compared to this one. It was so fascinating I was convinced it couldn't be true. The only thing I can immediately think to compare it to would be the movie: "Catch Me if You Can." Serpentine is principally about a man named Charles Sobhraj who is a biracial man born of a Vietnamese mother and an Indian father in WW2 era Vietnam. He grew to be a handsome, ethnically ambiguous man that spoke French, Vietnamese, English, Hindi and maybe even a few other languages that he picked up in his travels. He had all the makings of an exotic individual and he used that to his advantage. He became an adroit manipulator, thief, and escape artist. His feats were stuff of movies. I had to remind myself that there were real victims to these crimes. Initially I was just as enthralled with him as perhaps his victims were, but as the book wore on and the numbers of those left in his wake grew I just wanted him to be severely dealt with. The author Thomas Thompson did a spectacular job writing this book but I can safely say that after he did the leg work of gathering the facts the story wrote itself. I mean, it is so fanciful that it needed only to be put to paper. There's no wonder that it was a 13 week resident of the NY Times best-seller list. I could rave about this book for many more pages. If you are the least bit intrigued by true crimes and especially those of a bizarre or extravagant nature this would be an excellent read for you.

Not all stories have happy endings. At first, I didn't give this book four stars, but I was unable to decide why I gave it only three stars. But then I realized it was because I didn't like the ending. But you know what? Thompson told the story the way it was, not the way I wanted it to be.

"Even as the Air France jet travels towards the Istanbul terminal, Andrea Darreau saw his half brother through the window. There was no mistaking Charles, dressed as he was in the sleekest navy blazer, a celebrity's dark glass; he looked like a Greek tycoon." This book captured me. It actually got under my skin allowing me to do or think nothing else but Serpentine. The character Charles Sobhraj is a man who comes up in a world that does not welcome him. As a child he remains unloved and unwanted, due to his illigetimacy, and his mother Song's marriage to another man. Charles' paternal father on the other hand wants nothing to do with him and marries again starting a new family. Poor Charles refuses to accept his father's dismissal, and keeps forever after him, baggering him, pleading his attention and love, all to no avail. His mother Song on the other hand is more concerned with her new life, and could not care less. Without any support coming from either of his parents Charles embarks on a life on his own, educating himself, and familiarizing himself with crime and how it works. He starts out with small crimes and then everything swells out in enormous proportions to the point where he is hiring staff to work with him. He gets incarcerated more times than he can count, as his criminal activity reaches across two continents; parts of Turkey, Iran, Paris, Delhi, Pakistan, and all the way to Hong Kong. Words cannot sufficiently describe the dangerous man Charles has become, but with his good looks, fine clothes, quick charisma and easy manner bit by bit, strangers who do not know him trust him and are lured into his web of dark murky waters. This is a true story and one can learn a lot from it, in protection oneself when traveling alone and otherwise. I highly recommended this work of non-fiction. Reviewed by Heather Marshall Negahdar ( SUGAR-CANE 08/05/07)

Excellent and well written. I read this (true story) in the 80’s when I was a teen. I couldn’t put it down. Lost the book and in my 20’s got a new one from Chapters…and read it again. Couldn’t put it down. I lent it to someone and never got it back. In my 40’s I ordered it online…read it again and couldn’t put it down. This time it was destroyed along with all my other books when my condo building was destroyed in a fire. I am now buying this book a 4th time for my daughter to read. I know she’ll love it! And of course once she finishes it, I’ll borrow it and read it again! FOR THE RECORD….I’ve never read any other book more than once..let alone buy it 4 times!!

RAS

Excellent book that features the lives of both protagonists , before they met. Very well written, the descriptions of India and Thailand powerfully evoke the heat, dust and melee of life as Sobraj lived it.

Loved the vivid story. What a waste of a God-given brain power. Rotting in jail in Nepal till this day. 'Ayo Gorkhali' got him this time. No escape!

Total respect & admiration for the author. Loved his other books. Serpentine grabbed me from the start but halfway through it became too confusing, I started skipping pages and eventually lost interest.