The First Rule of Ten

First Sentence: I was just sitting down to a cold beer and hot corn soup, at the end of a long week, when my phone rang.Half Tibetan, half Caucasian, raised in the Buddhist monastery, Tenzing “Ten” Nurbu always wanted to be Sherlock Holmes. Now retired from the LAPD, he becomes a private investigator with a high-tech sidekick, and his first case.It’s always intriguing to have a protagonist with an unusual background and Ten is definitely different. A very good opening introduces us to the character, his background, outlook and ambition all within a dangerous situation and very effectively sets him, and us, up for the next step. Then, for some unexplainable reason, Hendricks falls into the rookie-author trap of not one, but two portents. Happily, he stopped that completely unnecessary device after those two.The mix of Buddhism, with descriptions and explanations of the rituals such as a bardo, is nice, but more research for accuracy would have been appreciated. Still, it’s a nice offset to Ten’s passion for his car and guns. His alleged telepathic powers with his cat is a bit over the top. I would suggest not reading this while hungry—“Thirty minutes later, we were serving up a cashew-and-vegetable stir-fry with basmati rice. Expertly chopped cucumber salad on the side.”There is an interesting mix of philosophy and menace in a verbal dual--“The Buddha himself said we shouldn’t believe his words without question—we must discover the truth for ourselves.” Brother Eldon saw things a little differently. “Obey your God, Nehemiah. Obey me. Go! Guard God’s Paradise!” I got a sudden urge to “find my own way” out of there, and quick.”—and a simplistic, but adequate definition of karma—“…it is our intention that determines our karma; good intentions produce good karma; bad intentions produce bad karma.”The story is well-plotted, and a bit painful for those of us who all too well remember Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple, but with a very interesting and effective twist. There are a few minor inaccuracies related to Buddhism, and rather TSTL move by the protagonist.“The First Rule of Ten” has plenty of action and a good resolution, as well as some minor first-book problems. Still, it makes for a good airplane read.THE FIRST RULE OF TEN (PI-Tenzing Norbu-LA-Contemp) - Good Hendricks, Gay and Tinker Lindsay – 1st in series Hay House Visions – January, 2012

It's about time some visionary publisher woke up to those of us who are spiritual and readers here on earth! This Valentine's Day, I'm doing the Happy Dance over the nascent existence of a new imprint at Hay House called Hay House Visions. Their mandate, as I understand it, is spiritual fiction.Full disclosure: I've been writing spiritual mystery novels for many years, and whilst they have received phenomenal feedback from agents, editors, publishers, and most happily, readers--alas, alack--publishers, manacled and enslaved in the dank galleys of their abusive marketing departments, have been slow on the uptake, to say the least.No matter, I am delighted to be able to report that Gay Hendricks' and Tinker Lindsay's The First Rule of Ten is a delicious inaugural offering. Their subtitle is: A Tenzing Norbu Mystery (Dharma Detective). Enter Tenzing Norbu, known to his friends as Ten, about-to-be former cop, and definitely former Tibetan Buddhist monk, as well as about-to-turn-into private investigator.This curious protagonist is a curious mélange. Sometimes, he reacts to the world as a cop. Sometimes, as a monk. Sometimes, as a damaged little boy. His response to the world, most of the time, is mindful--a nurturing message in the face of ordinary mystery novels. We readers who value spiritual practice over everything else in our lives are bound to dive in to these sorts of books over and over again.Inspired by what young Ten deems the mindfulness of the legendary Sherlock Holmes, he models patience, compassion, diligence, meditation, mindfulness, mess-ups, and recoveries all from his worldly/otherworldly perspective. The story is fast-paced, and yet it slows down right when we want it to go deep. The requisite elements of traditional mystery are all present and accounted for. The teaching, if you will, is so integrated into the story that I've had to go back in my Kindle to catch their subtleties and their wisdoms.Gay Hendricks, Ph.D., has served for more than 35 years as one of the major contributors to the fields of relationship transformation and body-mind therapies. Along with his wife, Dr. Kathlyn Hendricks, Gay is the co-author of many bestsellers, including Conscious Loving and Five Wishes. In recent years, Dr. Hendricks has been active in creating new forms of conscious entertainment.Tinker Lindsay is an accomplished screenwriter, author, script consultant, and conceptual editor. She has worked in the Hollywood entertainment industry writing and developing feature films for over three decades. A practitioner and teacher of meditation, she can usually be found writing in her home office situated directly under the Hollywood sign.I am so pleased that Dr. Hendricks and Ms. Lindsay have applied their talents to the mystery genre. Truth to tell? I can't wait to read the next one.For spiritual nourishment, please visit [...]

I have just finished the book 2 minutes ago. I long lost the habit of reading fiction. I usually read something 'useful'. But this book appeared and took me, and I loved it!It made me feel all sorts of emotions, the tears on my face - as a response to the ending - are still not dried up.I also learnt from it. About life, death, people.This is a good book.I imagine the authors enjoyed the process. I highly recommend this read.

Wanted to find another type of hero....someone with compassion...Ten has that....simple!

Me sorprendió esta historia detectivesca interesante por la mezcla con la filosofía budista de Ten, detective tibetano-americano que antes fue monje. Me gustó porque junto con la lectura de la historia fui practicando algunas de las herramientas del budismo que Tenzin explica mientras persigue a los malos. Es una mezcla inesperada. Según leí, los autores están asesorados por alguien que practica el budismo tibetano.

Deliciously different.

Really enjoyed seeing the inner workings of a mindful and spiritual professional at work. Can't wait to read more. Thanks from Australia.