Southern Thailand features in historical novel

A new historical novel focuses on the often under-explored setting of southern Thailand. English-language fiction about the country largely focuses on Bangkok or northern Thailand, Nikkei wrote. Dark Karma, written by a couple, Paul and Yuangrat Wedel, is set in a part of the country where ethnicity is mixed, including people of Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Thai heritage.

The novel touches on the history of the Thai Chinese business elite, a semi-illegal gambling business, and the Spanish Flu, which arrived in Thailand after World War I. It follows another piece of historical fiction the duo wrote in 2021. “That was one of the reasons we wrote both books — to show there is no single Thai culture,” said Paul.