Rich Kill, Poor Kill by Neil Humphreys

Shortlisted for the 2017 Singapore Book Award for Fiction

When a foreign worker is found dead in Singapore back street, few people care. But then another victim turns up, and then another, all killed with the same weapon. With its reputation as a safe, global city in ruins, Singapore struggles to come to grips with its first serial killer in decades. And when a famous woman disappears, terror takes hold.

In desperation, the authorities turn to one man they loathe almost as much as the serial killer—Detective Stanley Low. Belligerent and unrepentant, Low's subordination has been punished with a menial desk job. He's angry and refusing to address his bipolar condition, making him the least qualified detective to head a murder investigation with the world watching.

He is also the only man capable of understanding what drives the serial killer. But Low's mental health deteriorates as he mimics the mind of a madman in search of the sickening truth. He must solve the case quickly to stop a serial killer and save his sanity.