This book kicks off an exhilarating crime trilogy, delivering suspense, action, and intricate detective work that keeps you hooked. The Singlish transported me right back to the streets of Singapore. Beyond the mystery, the novel opens up Singapore's culture, showcasing its business intricacies, corruption, and vibrant street life. Loved this book.

Marina Bay Sins is a thumping good read - especially so if you have visited or lived in that part of the world. To outsiders, Singapore is the shining city of hope and prosperity, but Neil Humphreys peels back the layers to show the real underbelly, the inequality between the super wealthy locals and expats and the poor locals and imported workers and how the government itself is often the puppet master between these groups.
Detective Inspector Stanley Low is bi-polar and sees the world through these lenses, so yes, his world is very gritty and dark - but for him this is an advantage - he understands that the darkness is what gives him his edge, without it, he would just anyone else, so he forgoes medicine and risks the highs and lows to see where they take him. And they take him to the epitome of Singapore's wealth and corruption - Marina Bay Sands. If you are one of the paying guests, you see only glitz and glamor, if you are one of the working poor, it's a different tale.
DI Low navigates these highs and lows to find out what lies behind the murder of a prostitute at the Sands.
There are many Singlish words, maybe a few too many for a non SIngaporean reader, so have your favorite search engine on hand, but it adds to the authenticity of DI Low.
Well done Mr Humphreys, on a thoroughly enjoyable read that also provides food for thought on political, social and mental health issues as well.
I am grateful to NetGallery for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Marina Bay Sins by Neil Humphreys is unlike any book I've read, in a very fricative fashion ( actually, fricative is a new word I learned while reading this very 'intriguing' novel)! It takes place in Singapore's Marina Bay Sands, an extravagant, elegant resort with a hotel, casino, restaurants, bars, three towers, super-executive suites. On the 40th floor, in Room 4088, a double murder takes place. Then, the mystery enfolds. Too much honey, not enough money! Singapore Police led by veteran murder detective James Tan with his young partner, Charles Chan ( not Charlie! ) are teamed with eccentric, bipolar DI Stanley Low of the CPIB. The CPIB are under the Prime Minister's direction, stands for Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau, which is an extraordinary office! This story has many twists while developing our protagonists. These characters are amazing! There is humor, some very dark humor as well as some neceassary rough language. One aspect I found especially fascinating is the use of local Singaporean idioms...just adds more to this story!
I highly recommend this outstanding mystery!

It was a high-pace Asian thriller with a detective that held aggression by the balls. Detective Low was good at his job, but too many years spent undercover had left a definite mark on him. It was a good story, but I thought the amount of F-bombs was overdone, too much for my liking.

Overall, this was an okay read. This is the first SingLit I have read and I had a bit of trouble following Singlish.

To be honest, the usage of swear words spoiled the read a tad. Having said that, the twist at the end and Inspector Low's 'light-bulb' moment (something to do with Rosie) was the best part of this story.

The first in the Inspector Low crime thriller trilogy. Good book! This book was filled with suspense, action, intrigue, and lots of good detective work! It definitely was a good murder mystery!

It took me a little while to get into this book, but I ended up enjoying it.
I really liked the use of the characters speaking 'Singlish', although sometimes it was hard to know what some words meant - a lot of them you could kind of guess, but ended up Googling some of them. I found this quite interesting and really made me more interested in the story.
I also found that I could really picture the characters because of the way they talk.
Like I said, it took me a while to settle into the story but it was interesting and it's fascinating to see the difference in police procedures in other countries.
Overall I'd give it 4 stars as it kept my interest throughout the book and was interesting.

Marina Bay sins by Neil Humphreys.
An Inspector Low novel2 Book 1.
Detective Inspector Stanley Low – belligerent, bipolar and brilliant. A Chinese-Singaporean, educated in London, with a food in both cities. His mission, to eradicate violent crime wherever he finds it. Low is having a bad day. His bipolar disorder is ruining another session with his psychiatrist, and when a murdered prostitute and a dead expatriate are discovered at Singapore’s most prestigious hotel in the glamorous Marina Sins Bay, he is plunged back into the sordid underworld he was desperate to leave behind. 
A slow but OK read. 3*.

Detective Inspector Stanley Low of the Singaporean Police is mad,bad and dangerous to know. Months of working undercover during a very successful operation against a major Gangster has left with him with his undercover persona, ruthless Gangster Ah Lian constantly resurfacing as his "Mr Hyde". Low is not so much a loose cannon as a full 21 gun salute as he snarls,threatens and smashes his way through the rule book and anyone who gets in his way be they criminals ,colleagues,superiors or even prominent politicians,

An Australian is found dead in a hotel room, further investigation shows that there is also a dead prostitute in the room in what appears,literally,to be an open and shut case. Low investigates like a Bull in a china shop upsetting and abusing all who are unlucky enough to cross his path as the ripples from the murder spread further and further .

Low is a great character whose finer points could be listed on the back of a postage stamp with plenty of room to spare. He's been diagnosed as bipolar and there are some very touching moments when he's in a very dark place. Author Neil Humphreys manages the fine line between Low's mental illness being exploitative as a story-line and the explanation for some pretty horrendous behaviour. In his calmer moments Low is a simple man looking at Singapore's rise to the "Monaco of Asia" and wistfully looking back to simpler times..

I really enjoyed this book,as well as an entertaining crime thriller it's also a good look into the underbelly of Singapore,the side most don't see behind the fancy malls,the clean streets and the rush traffic where a Bentley or Ferrari is no big deal. Behind the slick facade there are the little people, wherever there's money there's corruption and this is Low's Singapore.

It's not for everyone,it's very violent and very sweary. My only problem was that some of the dialogue is in "Singlish" and there were acronyms that non-Singaporeans might have to Google. There is a glossary at the end,which I'd prefer to have been at the beginning of the book as reading on a Kindle I only found after I'd finished the story.
That aside I loved it and I'm looking forward to reading the next in the Stanley Low series.

4/5 - Very Good.

The first book and introduction to Detective Stanley Low of the CIPB in Singapore is a great read.

A story that really opens up the culture and way of life of Singapore. How they do business, the corruption, the illusion and what’s behind that.

With Murder and Prostitution, Gambling and big money, an entertaining cast and a peculiar yet likeable protagonist, this is a fine start to a series with a big twist that’s very well concealed until the reveal.

I really felt like I was there at times, with the authentic language, the food, the hawkers and the hotels.

It’s a fine effort and I’m lucky enough to have the 2nd book from NetGalley and have purchased the 3rd, so much did I enjoy this one.

Really good mystery with great hard-boiled detective dialogue, an intriguing lead detective with interesting sidekicks snd a real sense of modern day Singapore expertly conveyed. The twist at the end is a whopper!

I LOVED THIS. For me, it was my introduction to detective inspector low/ah lian.

Gritty, engaging, and though I so wanted to finish it in one sitting, I had to restrain myself as I didn't want it to end.

The plot twist at the end, damn son!

Absolutely brilliant Neil... love love love it

P.s. each time I read it, I drank out of my exclusive Marina Bay Sands cup 😆