In Search Of The Silk King

Maya Herman In Search of The Silk King A Novel Among many stories I heard in Southeast Asia, the most fascinating is the story of the legendary American “silk king” of Thailand – Jim Thompson. It is as mysterious as Asia itself. The name Jim Thompson seemed to follow me from the first moment I arrived in Bangkok. The more stories and rumors I heard, the more I became fascinated by them. They had all the ingredients of a good novel or a major movie – romance, mystery, glamour, exotic locations, and more. The legend of the “silk king” and his disappearance remains as mysterious today as it was in 1967. No clues were ever found. Only unanswered questions remained. Using poetic license, I decided to write a novel that might answer some of them. As such, the novel is very loosely and only in part based on the real life of Jim Thompson, as I learned of it primarily through living in Bangkok, traveling extensively throughout Southeast Asia and writing about it in my book of travel essays, The Jade Window (Bangkok, 1998). It is also in part based on the information I gathered in my research from the newspaper articles on Thompson, William Warren’s indispensable biography of him, on the interviews with Warren and Henry Thompson, through Alexander Macdonald’s notes and OSS archives, for all of which I am immensely grateful. Still, my “Jim Thompson”is not a historic but a fictional character. In Search of The Silk King is a work of fiction written in many voices that are tempered with the measure of truth. Any errors – biographical, historical, intended, or otherwise - are solely mine. This is the story of an adventure told in hero’s voice and in various voices of the people who knew him. It is also the story of his life that had the sweep of a historical romance and the power of a heroic quest. As Jim Thompson’s absorbing tale unfolds, the reader discovers what happened after his disappearance, how he succeeded and suffered and eventually found the truth. It is a novel of suspense, of fate and love lost and found. The “Jim Thompson” of my novel thinks of himself as an ordinary man in extraordinary circumstances. There are, on the tapes he sent from his after-life in exile to a journalist friend, his memories of the past: his childhood desire to travel to exotic places ... of his first and greatest love, of his marriage. As a young man, Jim went to New York and worked as an architect. He met Vera, a Russian ballerina, and fell in love with her. He gave her a brooch designed as a pair of ballet slippers made of emeralds and diamonds as a token of his great love. When Vera decided to go back to her old lover she returned one of the two slippers. Jim kept the slipper as the memento of his love that would prove to be fatal. After the breakup, Jim tried to find a new direction in life. He married a woman he barely knew and enlisted in the Army. This was his way of escaping the loss of his first great love that would mark his whole emotional life. He went to Africa where he worked for the OSS with Maurice, a half-French, half-Laotian mystery man. Not eager to return home, Jim volunteered to go to Southeast Asia. This was the real beginning of his journey. He fell in love with Bangkok and wanted to stay there even after the war was over. His wife Pat did not share his enthusiasm and agreed to a divorce. Jim returned to Bangkok with a plan to renovate the Oriental hotel. He did not succeed in that, but found his true vocation in a forgotten art of silk making. Jim almost single-handedly revived the Thai silk industry and became the most successful American businessman in Thailand. There is a story about silk. Jim’s life seemed full. He built a beautiful house and opened a new store. He seemed to have finally found his fulfillment. He had a beautiful young mistress, Nicole, and seemed

The mystery surrounding Jim Thompson's disappearance in Malaysia sparked off what was to become a seven-year investigation. The subsequent media attention generated by the search triggered a number of theories, some proving to have rather sinister connotations. In this intriguing book, the author seeks to evaluate most, if not all, of the speculative, and partially substantiated opinions which have been formed over the years. Communist conspiracy, suicide or simple misadventure? Only after reading this story are we in a position to decide.

The reader journeys to Thailand to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Jim Thompson, the "Thai Silk King."

The reader's decisions control an investigation into the mysterious disappearance of an American businessman in Thailand.

Second in the Aitkin family trilogy, begun with T̀he expatriates'.

How the West's greatest spy in Asia tried to stop the new American way of war—and the steep price he paid for failing Jim Thompson landed in Thailand at the end of World War II, a former American society dilettante who became an Asian legend as a spy and silk magnate with access to Thai worlds outsiders never saw. As the Cold War reached Thailand, America had a choice: Should it, as Thompson believed, help other nations build democracies from their traditional cultures or, as his ex-OSS friend Willis Bird argued, remake the world through deception and self-serving alliances? In a story rich with insights and intrigue, this book explores a key Cold War episode that is still playing out today. Highlights a pivotal moment in Cold War history that set a course for American foreign policy that is still being followed today Explores the dynamics that put Thailand at the center of the Cold War and the fighting in neighboring Laos that escalated from sideshow to the largest covert operation America had ever engaged in Draws on personal recollections and includes atmospheric details that bring the people, events—and the Thailand of the time—to life Written by a journalist with extensive experience in Asian affairs who has spent years investigating every aspect of this story, including Thompson's tragic disappearance

The Silk Road, which linked imperial Rome and distant China, was once the greatest thoroughfare on earth. Along it travelled precious cargoes of silk, gold, and ivory, as well as revolutionary new ideas. Its oasis towns blossomed into thriving centres of Buddhist art and learning. In time it began to decline. The traffic slowed, the merchants left, and finally its towns vanished beneath the desert sands to be forgotten for a thousand years. But legends grew up of lost cities filled with treasurees and guarded by demons. In the early years of the 20th century, foreign explorers began to investigate these legends, and very soon an international race began for the art treasures of the Silk Road. Huge wall paintings, sculptures, and priceless manuscripts were carried away, literally by the ton, and are today scattered through the museums of a dozen countries. Peter Hopkirk tells the story of the intrepid men who, at great personal risk, led these long-range archaeological raids, incurring the undying wrath of the Chinese.

Being seen as a target to be possessed by his closest master, he risked his life not letting the other party have their wish! He had been reborn as the daughter of the Patriarch, but he was a dying man whose Xuan Core had been snatched away by his stepmother and sister. The first day on the continent, Jiao Jiao actually died under the persecution of others, while she relied on her tenacious mind to survive. Every step she took, she gritted her teeth and stepped forward. This was because she wanted to repay this debt of blood with her own hands! She finally started to radiate brilliantly as she grew up. She expanded the second rate sect's Divine Profound Gate and became the idol of countless disciples. Opening the small world's exit, he led the group into the world of cultivation. She and he were also closely linked by the spinning wheel of fate.., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *. •He, was originally the king of the demon race. His tribulation was drawn into the Void Tempest and he fell into this continent. He was the female lord who experienced rebirth, and her uniqueness attracted him. He forcefully and forcefully approached, letting her fall step by step into the gentle net he had woven. She wanted the Great Dao to live on forever, even the unparalleled beauty wanted it!., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *. •He, the eldest son of a large clan, was one of the most outstanding youths of the younger generation. In the past, there had only been two types of people in this world: those who wanted and those who didn't. Initially, he had thought that the fiancee arranged by this family was the one whom he didn't want. He also did not expect that there would be a woman who would completely occupy his heart. Time was irreplaceable.., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *. •He, Xie Wang, one of the six demon kings, had even used a despicable method in order to keep her. For a moment, he regretted not being able to make it in time. After she had drifted away, he had searched all his life for her, but she was nowhere to be seen ...., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *., low, ✿... : *. •After writing for such a long time, one would have to experience the hardships of writing with a child on one side and writing on the other. But what could he do? I like to write stories. I like to write stories. I hope I can impress you with my story. However, it's going to be a fight soon. I really hope that you guys can keep chasing after me and see the exciting lives of my characters. You'll grow along with me and I'll bring you all more wonderful stories, alright?[Pills in the Nest, Group Number] 213192386 (TL: UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO/UFO][Weibo ID] Crayon Balls 2015... :*..............................................................................