Sins As Scarlet: 'In the heady tradition of Raymond Chandler and Michael Connelly' A. J. Finn, bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

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Description

While investigating a brutal murder of a transgender woman in LA, Inspector Iwata discovers a world of corruption and murder centred around the exploitation of Mexican immigrants Former homicide detective Kosuke Iwata is on the run from his past . . . Five years ago, he lost his family. Now he may have found his redemption. Living in LA and working as a private detective, he spends his days spying on unfaithful spouses and his nights with an unavailable woman. Still he cannot forget the family he lost in Tokyo. But that all changes when a figure from his old life appears at his door demanding his help. Meredith Nichol, a transgender woman and his wife's sister, has been found strangled on the lonely train tracks behind Skid Row. Soon he discovers that the devil is at play in the City of Angels and Meredith's death wasn't the hate crime the police believe it to be. Iwata knows that risking his life and future is the only way to silence the demons of his past. Reluctantly throwing himself back in to the dangerous existence he only just escaped, Iwata discovers a seedy world of corruption, exploitation and murder - and a river of sin flowing through LA's underbelly, Mexico's dusty borderlands and deep within his own past.

Reviews

Harrowing and gripping. An astute police procedural . . . Switching between LA, Mexico and Tokyo both Iwata's present and past are cleverly interwoven in a truly heart-rending climax * Daily Express *
Fresh and convincing . . . the dialogue is worthy of the great chronicler of LA's dark side, Raymond Chandler. But really, Obregon's writing has a unique flavour all of its own, wherever his books are set -- Jake Kerridge * Sunday Express *
Sins as Scarlet is a searing LA crime story, as poetic as it is brutal, as tender as it is disturbing -- Tim Weaver
Thanks to the excellent Iwata, you get a gripping mystery with a real conscience * Sunday Sport *
In the heady tradition of Raymond Chandler and Michael Connelly, Sins as Scarlet lays bare the bruised heart and broken soul of Los Angeles. Extraordinary stuff: a diabolically clever police procedural, a wrenching character study, and a merciless chronicle of a city in decay. I'm awestruck. -- A. J. Finn, author of international bestseller * THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW *
A dark, brutal ride through the underbelly of LA * ANTHONY HOROWITZ *
Masterpiece - that's the only way to describe Sins as Scarlet. Obregn's brilliant novel is, at once, a classic noir, a psychological thriller and a riveting examination-sometimes dark, sometime moving to the point of tears--of life in a less-than-angelic Los Angeles * JEFFERY DEAVER *
Evocative, perceptive writing * Sunday Time Crime Club *
This bleak, richly descriptive and haunting thriller walks of the wild side of Los Angeles * Peterborough Telegraph *
A brace of cutting-edge themes are threaded into the abrasive narrative . . . It is a combustible mix, but as in the earlier Blue Light Yokohama, the author has the full measure of his difficult material. With his vividly evoked Mexican and LA settings [he] delivers a pacey, page-turning thriller, but the underlying seriousness gives real texture. Iwata is a richly drawn, conflicted hero, and this is another savage journey into the dark heart of America * Barry Forshaw, Financial Times *
Obregn keeps the unpredictable plot of Sins As Scarlet churning with myriad surprises that are grounded in believability * Mail Online *
Praise for Blue Light Yokohama * - *
Taut and atmospheric with twists galore * Woman & Home *
An outstanding debut -- The most awaited books of 2017 * Sunday Express *
A twisty, highly entertaining thriller that pulls us into the heart of an unconventional hero as he fights corruption in the gritty, glittering world of Tokyo -- Julia Heaberlin, author of * Sunday Times bestseller, Black-Eyed Susans *
Refreshing. Engaging * Daily Mail *

Author Bio

British born of a Spanish father and a French mother, Nicolas Obreg n grew up between London and Madrid. As a former travel writer, he gained extensive experience of Japan. While out there on assignment, he learned of the unsolved Miyazawa Family Murders, which informed his first novel, Blue Light Yokohama. It is also the focus of his Universal Audio true crime podcast, FACELESS. While writing his second novel, Sins As Scarlet, he volunteered in the Los Angeles youth incarceration system and underserved communities across East LA as a creative writing mentor. His short story, Colibri, features in the anthology, Both Sides- Stories From the Border, nominated for an Anthony Award, while Blue Light Yokohama was nominated for the T. Jefferson Parker Award. Nicolas is currently working on his fourth novel and writing episodes for the podcast, Scotland Yard Confidential. He lives in Madrid.