Moonrise, Sunset (Mask Noir)

Rating:
Summary: Singapore Unveiled
Review: It's always cool to be able to check out a writer from a relatively obscure country, and Baratham's Singaporan whodunit is no exception. How Kum Menon (a Chinese/Malay) goes to the park with his fiancee and wakes up with her dead in his arms, the same night as several other murders in the same park. From there on it's a fairly straightforward investigation by D'Cruz a thorny Chinese/Indian policeman, and their mutual Arab lawyer friend Jafar. What quickly comes to the fore is the extreme multi-ethnicity and multi-culturalism of Singapore's inhabitants, as various cultural traits and prejudices prove important to the murder mystery. In the end, the culprit isn't a shocker, but How Kum's reaction is, and the reader will come away with a nice sketch of Singapore.

Rating:
Summary: Singapore Unveiled
Review: It's always cool to be able to check out a writer from a relatively obscure country, and Baratham's Singaporan whodunit is no exception. How Kum Menon (a Chinese/Malay) goes to the park with his fiancee and wakes up with her dead in his arms, the same night as several other murders in the same park. From there on it's a fairly straightforward investigation by D'Cruz a thorny Chinese/Indian policeman, and their mutual Arab lawyer friend Jafar. What quickly comes to the fore is the extreme multi-ethnicity and multi-culturalism of Singapore's inhabitants, as various cultural traits and prejudices prove important to the murder mystery. In the end, the culprit isn't a shocker, but How Kum's reaction is, and the reader will come away with a nice sketch of Singapore.