Singapore Killer (Ash Carter Book Five) by Murray Bailey

Singapore Killer by Murray Bailey.
Publishing 1st June 2020 by Heritage Books UK.
Read May 2020.

Ex-British Army officer and military investigator, Ash Carter is trying to make a go of it as a Private Investigator in 1950s Singapore - with the help of his craggy receptionist, Madame Chau - but it is proving more than a little tricky to make a living out of this gumshoe lark.

So, when Ash is called on to help with an investigation into a crash involving a helicopter, in which the pilot and a military policeman were burned to death, he jumps at the chance for something to get his teeth into - and as it turns out, he is onto something big, as the crash seems to have been no accident and an enigmatic clue at the scene points towards the name BlackJack.

Ash knows that the Special Investigations Branch are looking for a killer, who seems to be targeting military personnel - and the bodies are starting to pile up. Could these all be the victims of the unknown BlackJack?

A trail of clues leads Ash to a small town in north-east Malaya, where he is supposed to rendezvous with a contact who will fill him in on details of the hunt for BlackJack and a possible link to gold smuggling. When his contact fails to show, Ash is sure his disappearance is somehow related to a mysterious compound outside the town that the locals are reluctant to talk about.

The time has come for Ash to take matters into his own hands and head to the mysterious compound, called Shangri-La. He is about to find out that something very evil lurks behind those walls and it is going to be down to him to put matters right.

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Singapore Killer is set in 1950s Singapore and is the fifth book in the Ash Carter series. Although this is my first Ash Carter book, I was easily able to pick up enough of Ash's backstory from the little asides he drops throughout, and had no trouble reading it as a stand-alone - but I will say that having read this one, I will certainly be going back and filling in all the gaps by reading the first four books as well!

When we first meet Ash, he has been called on to stand in as the investigator of a helicopter crash, in the absence of official military personnel, and his insight soon exposes that this was no accident. At the scene of the crime, there is also a set of dog tags which bear the name BlackJack - a clue that is set to open a whole dangerous can of worms as far as Ash is concerned.

Before the search for BlackJack takes off, we are treated to some examples of the kind of P.I. work Ash has been occupying himself with since trying to make a living in civvy street, under the watchful eye of the glorious Madame Chau, his faithful receptionist. These cases seem to range from the sublime to the ridiculous, but they serve to show that Ash is a decent man, and rather good at this old investigating game. As for Madame Chau, she may be ever so crusty and irascible, but under that hard exterior she clearly does care about Ash, and she is a wily old bird too. I absolutely adored her.

However, the heart of this book is about the gripping search for the serial killer BlackJack, whose killing methods seem to be getting ever more flamboyant, and as the bodies pile up, Ash finds himself tied up in gold smuggling and the cult like goings on behind the walls of the community of Shangri-La. This is where the story takes an even darker turn, and what was already proving to be an absorbing read turned into a proper page-turner too. This is beautifully paced, with ever increasing tension, and you find yourself wracking your brain to put all the pieces together before it is too late. No spoilers from me, but this is exciting stuff and I loved the twisty ending very much.....and there is scope to pick up the story of a certain character in a later adventure, I think (please, Mr Bailey?).

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about this book is the 1950s military setting, with an action movie twist - and more than a touch of James Bond about it. I found this really nostalgic and rather classy, as it put me in mind of Sunday afternoons in front of the TV as a child, when my dad would be glued to some cracking old movies - with proper old school heroes. I was easily able to picture Ash Carter as Bill Travers with an equally estimable supporting cast of the ilk of Anthony Quayle, Alec Guinness and co. But this book still works well in the modern age and is just as exciting as any action story with a contemporary setting, or dark serial killer tale.

There are also some fascinating details about the political situation in Singapore and Malaya in these pages, that I found really interesting, as I did not previously know a lot about the fall-out from World War Two in this part of the world.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Singapore Killer and am keen to see where Murray Bailey takes Ash Carter next in his forthcoming adventure Singapore Fire - and, of course, as mentioned above, I also need to fill in all the backstory. Highly recommended!

Singapore Killer is available to buy from your favourite book retailer in ebook and paperback format from 1st June 2020.

Thank you to Murray Bailey from gifting me a copy of Singapore Killer in return for an honest review, and for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

From the cover of the book:

A helicopter crash results in the pilot and a military policeman burned to death. 

It’s unclear what they were doing, but this was no accident 

and the name BlackJack is found at the scene. 

Ash Carter knew that the Special Investigations Branch were tracking a killer, 

and when a faceless body is found in Perak, and he loses contact with the SIB, 

he races to north-east Malaya to help. 

There Carter discovers a mysterious town that the locals won’t talk about.

With no sign of his contact and a mounting body count, 

Carter is drawn into a dark case from which there seems no escape.

Other books in the Ash Carter series:

Book One: Singapore 52

New Year 1952. Ash Carter is coerced into working for the Singapore government. Both political and military tensions are high. The great fear is that the “war” in Malaya will spill over onto the island and that Chinese Communists are plotting against the government. Carter is tasked to uncover the plan. Meanwhile he has his own personal agenda. He wants to find out who killed his friend.

Book Two: Singapore Girl

A grisly discovery. When a headless body is found on the causeway, Ash Carter is called upon to investigate. He needs to find out if this is just another drug-war punishment or something more. The investigation soon gets shut down. But he knows it’s not over. And it’s not in his nature to quit.

Book Three: Singapore Boxer

Undercover agent. Ash Carter joins a private protection force in Malaya. He thinks he’s investigating a missing person, but locals are dying. Amid intrigue, deceit and deception, will Carter uncover the truth before it’s too late?

Book Four: Singapore Ghost

Bad spirits in Penang. Ash Carter has a job that seems beneath him: babysit a newspaper reporter. She’s investigating ghost stories at the Penang barracks but it’s Carter’s past that is back to haunt him. Stuck between the two criminal organisations, Carter must find a solution and put the ghosts to rest.

Book Six: Singapore Fire - to be released early 2021

The Endgame: Ash Carter is in love, but Su Ling is inextricably linked to Andrew Yipp, the head of the biggest Chinese Secret Society in Singapore. Political tensions are high and the Secretary for Internal Security tasks Carter to find evidence against Yipp. Fail to do so and Su Ling will be arrested and charged. Once again caught between the government and the criminal gangs, it’s time for Carter to choose. Escape now or stand and fight?

About the author:

Murray Bailey got his first taste of success when he was published in the Times at 18 and in his local newspaper.

Although he went on to pursue a different career, he continued to write and edit and became the editor of an international magazine and editor of 4 technical books. 

His first work of fiction, I Dare You, was published in 2016 and The Lost Pharaoh continues the ancient Egyptian story glimpsed in Map of the Dead and is his ninth title. 

Murray was born in Greater Manchester, England and has being moving south ever since. He now lives on the beautiful Dorset coast with his wife and family.