BooksChatter: ℚ☄ One Red Bastard: Robert Chow [3]

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with author Ed Lin to talk about One Red Bastard (first published 24 April 2012; this new edition21 November 2017, Witness Impulse, 289 pages), a Noir Mystery, book three in the Robert Chow series.

"Lin has a rewardingly sharp eye for both the issues that divide the denizens of New York’s Chinatown and the features that bind them together." - Kirkus Reviews

"As in previous novels, Lin does a fine job sketching a mid-seventies Manhattan beset by financial crisis, a Chinatown roiled by events half a world away, and the and family and community dynamics of Chinatown’s insular inhabitants. Readers drawn to crime fiction that illuminates other eras and other cultures will find much to savor here." - Thomas Gaughan Booklist review

|| Synopsis || Trailer || Teaser: Excerpt || The Series || Author Q&A || About the Author || Giveaway & Tour Stops ||

A very warm welcome to Ed Lin; thank you for joining us on BooksChatter!

To begin I'd like to share the trailer for One Red Bastard - enjoy!

What was the inspiration for One Red Bastard?

"One Red Bastard is the third and so far final book in the narrative arc of NYPD detective Robert Chow. The series, which is set in 1970s New York City, began with This Is a Bust and Snakes Can’t Run. Chow is a Chinese American cop who has finally learned in Bastard to control his kneejerk reactions (to some degree). There’s a politically sensitive murder--this is around the time that the People’s Republic of China has stepped up its game for global political power against the Republic of China, which at this time was based on the island of Taiwan. Chow has to find the real murderer while the rest of the NYPD closes in on the top person of interest: Chow’s girlfriend."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"Chow has a sense of humor but he’s overall much more dumb than me. I would never actually do and say the things he does. Then again, I don’t walk around with gun, either. I guess the interest in the past and the things that don’t change like human nature is something I’m keenly attuned to. Also, I’m a somewhat funny person and humor is a major streak that runs through the books."

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for One Red Bastard - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"My friend Chez Ong, who heads the design shop Spoon + Fork, put his sharp eye and dexterous fingers to work. Actually parts of photographs are incorporated and yours truly shot those in Chinatown one early morning!"

Why should we read One Red Bastard and the Robert Chow series and what sets it apart from the rest?

"I can’t think of another series that takes the view of a jaded though somewhat amused Asian American protagonist. Also, I can’t think of other mysteries that contemplate the effect of the politics of China affecting Chinese Americans. That’s worth at least a buck alone!"

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I do plot a bit but I’m pretty loose as well. I’m a rather vengeful person. Many of my ideas come from overthinking about how I’m going to get back at someone or some entity that has slighted me (writing bad reviews on Yelp is actually a great steam valve, btw). I do want to write a horror book at some point because I love monsters. I love great old crime books. I imagine that someday I can find another overlooked classic such as Fast One by Paul Cain."

What is in store next?

"I also write a mystery series set in Taipei for Soho Crime. I’m working on the third book in that series to follow Ghost Month and Incensed.

I also wrote a short story that is being turned into a videogame. I understand it will launch at some point in 2018."

Thank you for sharing!