Book cover of A Nail Through the Heart: A Novel of Bangkok

Book description

Travel writer Poke Rafferty was good at looking for trouble - so good that he made a little money writing a few offbeat travel guides for the young and terminally bored. But that was before Bangkok stole his heart. Now the expat American is happily playing family with Rose, the…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked A Nail Through the Heart as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I love this author whose books are full of wonderful quirky descriptions and dark humour unusual in this genre. I love the unusual characters and setting. A writer living in Thailand and getting to grips with the culture and people as he also gets caught up in criminal activity.

This title is the first of a series (best read in order)–I have enjoyed reading all of them enormously as the long-term story has developed alongside clever page-turning standalone plots.

From Patrick's list on surprisingly unconventional crime.

If you love A Nail Through the Heart...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like A Nail Through the Heart?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like A Nail Through the Heart.

Browse books like A Nail Through the Heart

Book cover of The Last Policeman
Book cover of Killed at the Whim of a Hat
Book cover of Crashed: A Junior Bender Mystery

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,298

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like A Nail Through the Heart, you might also like...

Book cover of Portrait of an Artist as a Young Woman

Portrait of an Artist as a Young Woman by Alexis Krasilovsky,

Kate from Jules et Jim meets I Love Dick.

A young woman filmmaker’s journey of self-discovery, set against a backdrop of the sexual liberation movement of the 1970s and 1980s. In Portrait of an Artist as a Young Woman, we follow Ana Fried as she faces the ultimate…

Book cover of Dark Fae Outcast

Dark Fae Outcast by Autumn M. Birt,

Trapped in our world, the fae are dying from drugs, contaminants, and hopelessness. Kicked out of the dark fae court for tainting his body and magic, Riasg only wants one thing: to die a bit faster. It’s already the end of his world, after all.

But while scoring his last…

5 book lists we think you will like!