Zelda wants to teach children English and “find herself” in Kathmandu. Ian wants to get stoned and trek the Himalayas. Tommy wants to get rich by smuggling diamonds. How their stories collide will leave you on the edge of your seat! Travel from the dusty, tout-filled streets and holy sites of Nepal to the sultry metropolises and picture-perfect beaches of Thailand, as Zelda and Ian try to outsmart the smugglers and escape Asia alive. This fast-paced, thrilling travel mystery set in Nepal and Thailand is sure to captivate readers thirsty for some armchair adventure. Down and Out in Kathmandu: A Backpacker Mystery is the perfect book for lovers of dark humor, backpacker fiction and (mis)adventure novels. This novel is a PREQUEL to the amateur sleuth mysteries Zelda gets involved with in the Zelda Richardson Mystery Series. 5 stars: "This story has a great female lead and an exotic setting. I was completely immersed in the country of Nepal. The images were vividly concocted in my mind. I was so swept up in the novel that I want to read Zelda's continuing adventures in the next book. I recommend reading this title." TripFiction member review "A book I'd like to mention to any readers thirsting for some armchair adventure." Beth Green of The Displaced Nation 4 stars: "Quite an eventful trip, but I loved it!" Goodreads Giveaway winner's review Loosely based on my own experiences traveling around Southeast Asia, Down and Out in Kathmandu offers a peek into the backpacker culture of Nepal and Thailand, and insight into what life can be like for a Westerner volunteering in a developing country. Down and Out in Kathmandu is the perfect book for lovers of backpacker fiction and (mis)adventure novels. A Face-paced, thrilling and insightful read, especially if you're interested in - or about to travel to - Nepal or Thailand. "An excellent novel full of travel stories for the new or current backpacker. Anyone who has backpacked, thrown themselves naively into another culture, will be able to relate to this, and should read it." - Author Kait Fennell "Down and Out is an engrossing and thrilling travel mystery that was hard to put down. Alderson's descriptions of Nepal and Bangkok were very realistic...I highly recommend Down and Out, as it includes a little bit of everything readers love in good books." - Author Jill Dobbe Jennifer S. Alderson was born in San Francisco, raised in Seattle, and currently lives in Amsterdam. Her love of travel, art, and culture inspires her ongoing mystery series, the Adventures of Zelda Richardson . Her background in journalism, multimedia development, and art history enriches her novels. When not writing, she can be found in a museum, biking around Amsterdam, or enjoying a coffee along the canal while planning her next research trip. In Down and Out in Kathmandu , Zelda gets entangled with a gang of smugglers whose Thai leader believes she's stolen his diamonds. The Lover's Portrait is a suspenseful "whodunit?" about Nazi-looted artwork that transports readers to wartime and present-day Amsterdam. Art, religion, and anthropology collide in Rituals of the Dead , a thrilling artifact mystery set in Dutch New Guinea (Papua) and the Netherlands. The Lover's Portrait was Chill With A Book's January 2018 Book of the Month, chosen as one of TripFiction's 10 Favorite Books set in Amsterdam, and won the Silver Cup in Rosie's Book Review Team 2017 Awards, Mystery category. The Lover's Portrait also won a Chill With A Book Readers' Award, Readers' Favorite 5 star medal, was one of The Displaced Nation magazine's Top 36 Expat Fiction Picks of 2016, and came in at 14 in BookLife's 2016 Prize for Fiction in the Mystery category. It was also one of Women Writers, Women's Books magazine's Recommended Reads for April 2017. Her short story set in Panama and Costa Rica, Holiday Gone Wrong , will help fans better understand this unintentional amateur sleuth's decision to study art history and give new readers a taste of her tantalizing misadventures. Her travelogue, Notes of a Naive Traveler: Nepal and Thailand , is a must-read for those interested in learning more about - or wishing to travel to - Nepal and Thailand. It was also awarded a Readers' Favorite 5 star medal. Learn more about Jennifer and her books on her website (http://www.JenniferSAlderson.com), Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/JenniferSAldersonAuthor), Twitter (@JSAauthor) or Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/JennifeSAlderson).