MAY 2017 - AudioFile
P.J. Ochlan narrates quietly and steadily as Tokyo homicide Inspector Iwata and his partner, Noriko Sakai, investigate the horrifying slaughter of a family. Soon, the pair find themselves puzzling over the ritualistic aspects of the murder: black smudges, a strange incense smell, a large black sun inscribed in charcoal, and other odd clues. Ochlan delivers the narrative and disturbing descriptions in unaccented tones. Japanese names and terms are smoothy read with a credible accent. The story of the murder is interspersed with Iwata’s memories of a poem and his earlier life. This gritty yet haunting story makes for an unusual police procedural. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
★ 01/23/2017
After a tantalizing prologue, Obregón maintains a high level of suspense throughout his superior fiction debut, an intricately constructed whodunit that doesn’t sacrifice depth of characterization for plot. One day in 1996, policeman Hideo Akashi and his wife are riding a cable car in the Nagasaki Prefecture when a woman attempts to open the car door. After stabbing the attendant who tries to stop her, she succeeds in opening the door and jumps out. Akashi manages to grab her by the arm, but after seeing a tattoo on her wrist of a large black sun, he lets her plummet to her death. Fifteen years later, Akashi, a respected Tokyo police inspector, jumps to his death off a bridge. Akashi had been investigating the murders of the Kaneshiros, parents and two children, who were butchered in their home by a killer who removed the father’s heart. The case passes to Inspector Iwata, who notices a drawing of a black sun on the ceiling of the bedroom where one of the victims was found. While the complex mystery itself will keep readers turning pages, the book’s real strength is Iwata, a compellingly tormented lead, whose demons don’t prevent him from doggedly pursuing the truth. Agent: Daniel Kirschen, ICM Partners. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
"Obregón’s tense, atmospheric Tokyo-set debut...pulses with a dark energy all its own...a fresh, up-and-coming voice in crime fiction." —Library Journal (starred review)
"Tantalizing...Obregon maintains a high level of suspense through his superior fiction debut, an intricately constructed whodunit that doesn't sacrifice depth of characterization for plot." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“A compelling, brilliantly moody, and layered novel that's sure to be one of the most talked about debuts in 2017.” —Criminal Element, review
“A stunning alchemy of spellbinding mystery and poignant reflection on the nature of human loneliness…an extraordinary first novel.” —RT Book Reviews
"With a labyrinthine plot and a likable protagonist, Blue Light Yokohama is a strong beginning to what promises to be an excellent series." —The Guardian
"Excellent...This slow-burning but gripping book is based on an unsolved real-life case, but the central crime is only one of many mysteries of Japanese life the book explores, wisely avoiding the temptation to provide neat answers." —The Sunday Express
"Poetic, chilling, and mesmerizing storytelling."—Ragnar Jonasson, author of Snow Blind
"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 Black-Eyed Susans
"Obregón is a bright, sophisticated new voice in crime fiction: his writing sings at you, reverberates, makes you consider more than just the urgent clamour of his novel’s well-hewn murder plot. In Inspector Iwata, he has created a quiet, troubled hero whom readers will be sure to follow from one disturbing, atmospheric story to the next." —Benjamin Wood, author of The Ecleptic and Bellwether Revivals
"Obregón’s full-bodied prose is by turns gritty and poetic, and it’s consistently energetic. Given the terrific chemistry between the two lead detectives, here’s hoping this debut novel kicks off a new series." —Kirkus Reviews
Library Journal
★ 02/01/2017
A detective with a troubled past plus a serial killer are often ingredients for a been-there-done-that thriller. Not so with Obregón's tense, atmospheric Tokyo-set debut, which pulses with a dark energy all its own. Newly reinstated homicide cop Iwata is partnered with another inspector who makes it clear that she wants nothing to do with him (and neither does the Tokyo brass). Luckily, or not, the pair soon catch a gruesome case that requires their full attention: the murder of an entire family with ritualistic overtones, the particularly strange symbol of a black sun left at the crime scene. The victims had held a plethora of secrets, none of them good. A stalker had the teenage daughter in (presumably) his sights. The father was being harassed at work. And the killer isn't done. Iwata suffers from his own private torment—from nightmares that plague the little sleep he gets—to the near-constant repetition of the titular song in his head. VERDICT This gritty story, in what will hopefully become a new series, has roots in American noir yet fully embraces its Japanese setting, establishing Obregón as a fresh, up-and-coming voice in crime fiction.
MAY 2017 - AudioFile
P.J. Ochlan narrates quietly and steadily as Tokyo homicide Inspector Iwata and his partner, Noriko Sakai, investigate the horrifying slaughter of a family. Soon, the pair find themselves puzzling over the ritualistic aspects of the murder: black smudges, a strange incense smell, a large black sun inscribed in charcoal, and other odd clues. Ochlan delivers the narrative and disturbing descriptions in unaccented tones. Japanese names and terms are smoothy read with a credible accent. The story of the murder is interspersed with Iwata’s memories of a poem and his earlier life. This gritty yet haunting story makes for an unusual police procedural. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2016-12-19
A tough Tokyo detective faces resistance in his new post as he faces off against a brutal and taunting serial killer.Workaholic police inspector Iwata faces resistance from the moment he arrives at Tokyo's Division One. Senior inspector Isao Shindo questions his education, his experience, and his readiness for the grittiness of the Tokyo PD. Indeed, Iwata is plagued by nightmares. Luckily for him and the reader, Iwata is partnered with Sakai, a brash female detective. Their first case, from a large stack of the unsolved, is the murder of the Korean Kaneshiro family, killed in their home. The four family members were all brutally butchered and the father's heart removed. The only clue is a jagged black sun the killer etched on the ceiling in sooty smudges. Leads come in from various directions. The teenage Takako Kaneshiro had a perverted stalker; her father, Tsunemasa, was being harassed at work; the family stood in the way of a housing development represented by a scary ex-con named Kiyota. More murders follow, with the sun symbol left behind as a calling card, and the press labels the perp The Black Sun Killer. Iwata and Sakai, disrespected by the department, must fight for additional resources. Their path to the killer is long and tangled, leading far from the city and to a former investigator who holds valuable secrets. Obregon's full-bodied prose is by turns gritty and poetic, and it's consistently energetic. Given the terrific chemistry between the two lead detectives, here's hoping this debut novel kicks off a new series.
