"Tokyo Time" by Dawn Farnham: Review/Giveaway

Review by Terrance McArthur

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase it.

Singapore, 1942—the Japanese Army has overrun the island. British, Australian, and Indian troops and citizens are prisoners. 3 p.m. is now 4:30 p.m., as it would be in the time zone of Japan. Everything in Singapore runs on Tokyo Time, a mystery novel by Dawn Farnham.

In the police department, a Eurasian detective must work with his new boss from Japan. Martin Beck has been promoted to detective by Kano Hayashi, who used to be a police chief in Nagasaki. They uneasily circle each other, trading haikus and quotes from Shakespeare, trying to find ways to work with each other, and wondering how much they can trust each other.

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Image Source Brash Books

A murder case forces them to accelerate the process. The Asian widow of Sir Solomon Abraham, who was one of Singapore’s richest men, is found smothered in the ashes of a burned-out shrine. Because Sir Solomon was a close friend of the area’s new governor—the Japanese emperor’s brother-in-law—the case must be closed quickly, and the arrested party must not be Japanese.

The hunt is on. Martin and Kano sift for clues in an occupied territory where citizens are ousted from their homes to make way for their new overlords, where a scarcity of goods leads to crime, and where the smallest perception of disrespect to the conquerors is met with swift death. Kano meets a waitress who might be more involved in the mystery than she appears to be. Martin finds himself forced to prove he is who he says he is, and he finds that his multicultural identity might be built on lies.

Farnham’s twelve years of living in Singapore gives her a firm grounding in the culture and history of the island. She crafts a twisting labyrinth of clues, suspects, and deception. The reader is thrown into an unfamiliar time and place of turmoil and fear. This is the beginning of a new series that blends police procedural, historical intrigue, and Asian philosophy. There’s more to Tokyo Time than noodles and Hamlet.

To enter to win a copy of Tokyo Time, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line "tokyo,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen September 30, 2023. US residents only and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. If entering via comment please include your email address so we can contact you. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section in Kings River Life and in our mystery category here on KRL News & Reviews. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. And check out our new mystery podcast which features mystery short stories and first chapters read by local actors! A new episode goes up next week.

You can use this link to purchase the book or click here. If you have adblocker on you may not be able to see the Amazon link:

Terrance V. Mc Arthur is newly retired as a Librarian in Fresno County, California. He is also a storyteller, puppeteer, magician, and maker of pine needle baskets. On top of that he writes stories that range from rhymed children's tales to splatterpunk horror. He's an odd bird, but he's nice to have around.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.