Eliot Pattison (Joseph Eliot Pattison, b. 20 October 1951) is an American

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

yer, non-fiction author on the subject of

international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (see: World economy) In most countries, such trade represents a significant ...

, and is best known as an award-winning

mystery fiction Mystery is a genre fiction, fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains wiktionary:mysterious, mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually prov ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

. His professional career consists of advising and representing U.S. and foreign companies on international investment and trade issues. He has published five books and more than 30 articles on international topics. Pattison is best known for his two series of

mystery novels Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as s ...

set in different time periods and geographic areas. His Inspector Shan series is set in modern-day

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

, and features former

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

Justice Department Investigator Shan Tao Yun. His first novel ''The Skull Mantra'' won the Edgar Allan Poe Award in 2000.Edgar Award Winners And Nominees
The Inspector Shan series has been translated into over 20 languages and are sold around the world. The tenth and final book of the series, ''Bones of the Earth'', was released in 2019. Each novel involves one or more murders which set up a "who-done-it" mystery that protagonist Inspector Shan must resolve. The stories are set against a background of

Tibetan history While the Tibetan plateau has been inhabited since pre-historic times, most of Tibet's history went unrecorded until the introduction of Tibetan Buddhism around the 6th century. Tibetan texts refer to the kingdom of Zhangzhung (c. 500 BCE – 625 ...

, culture, and

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

, reflecting Pattison's extensive research and concern about the impact of Chinese control of modern-day Tibet. Pattison’s ''Bone Rattler'' historical mystery series features protagonist Duncan McCallum, a Scottish immigrant to North America in its colonial years. The series begins in

territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

near modern-day

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

. The ongoing series currently consists of six novels. Pattison’s 2011

postapocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astr ...

crime novel ''Ashes of the Earth'', a departure from his usual subject matter and settings, was critically acclaimed and received starred reviews from both ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' and '' Booklist''. Pattison is married and has three children. He resides with his family on an 18th-century farm in

Oley Valley The Oley Valley is a valley northeast of Reading, Pennsylvania. It covers all of Oley, Pike, Ruscombmanor, Alsace, and part of Exeter Township. The valley is drained by Manatawny and Pine Creeks, and is a part of the Schuylkill River system. At ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Novels

Inspector Shan Series # ''The Skull Mantra'' (1999) # ''Water Touching Stone'' (2001) # ''Bone Mountain'' (2002) # ''Beautiful Ghosts'' (2004) # ''Prayer of the Dragon'' (2007) # ''The Lord of Death'' (2009) # ''Mandarin Gate'' (2012) # ''Soul of the Fire'' (2014) # ''Skeleton God'' (2017) # ''Bones of the Earth'' (2019) Bone Rattler Series # ''The Bone Rattler'' (2007) # ''Eye of The Raven'' (2010) # ''Original Death'' (2013) # ''Blood of the Oak'' (2016) #''Savage Liberty'' (2018) #''The King’s Beast'' (2020) Hadrian Boone # ''Ashes of the Earth'' (2011)

Non-fiction

*''Registration of Foreign Agents in the United States: A Practical and Legal Guide'' (1981) (Edited by Joseph E. Pattison with John L. Taylor) * ''Establishing a Transnational Franchise'' (1988) * ''Acquiring the Future: America's Survival and Success in the Global Economy'' (1990) *''Breaking Boundaries: Public Policy vs. American Business in the World Economy'' (1996) (Selected by ''The New York Times'' as one of the five best management books of the year)Claire E. White, "An Interview with Eliot Pattison"
Writers Write Website, accessed 31 May 2009 * ''Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Laws'' (2003)

Awards

''The Skull Mantra'' won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best First Novel in 2000.

References

External links

* http://www.eliotpattison.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Pattison, Eliot American mystery writers American lawyers 1951 births Living people American male novelists 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers