“I was thinking about a lot of things, including the concept of love. We always look upon it as a positive emotion. But what about its alter ego? To what extent can love bring out the dark side of man?” Dass told FMT Lifestyle.
These thoughts brought out a creative spark in him, and Dass found himself compelled to write. The result is “Skin”, a tense thriller tackling themes such as mental health, corruption and abuse.
In “Skin”, Inspectors Alysha (Aly) and Raj are assigned to investigate a gruesome murder. A prominent investigative journalist has been found dead, her naked body in a foetal position with her hands covering her face. As forensic investigators attempt to move her hands, they discover the entire skin on her face has been surgically removed.
When more women are found dead in the same manner, Aly and Raj’s investigations bring them to the scenic tea plantations of Cameron Highlands, and then the sleepy town of Teluk Intan. Soon, the pair discover they face a sinister adversary with a dark past – and an even darker mind.
“I hope readers enjoy this Malaysian take on the usually western-centric crime thriller,” Dass quipped.
The PJ-born author considers himself an “accidental writer”: he aspired to become a screenwriter but later pivoted to novels. He currently works as a researcher with a think tank in Singapore, where he has lived for the last five years.
Dass names Chris Carter and Thomas Harris as major writing influences. In fact, his character Inspector Aly is inspired by one of Harris’s best-known characters, Clarice Starling from “The Silence of the Lambs”.
Published by Penguin Random House SEA, “Skin” is a sequel to his 2023 novel “The Number Four”, which also featured Aly and Raj.
Dass has always been fascinated by crime fiction. As a child, he grew up on a healthy diet of investigative documentaries such as “The FBI Files” and “Interpol Investigates”: “Every Friday night on Astro!” the author remembers fondly.
Also helpful was having a family friend who was a former police officer. He proved to be a great source of information for Dass, who also spoke to a forensic science expert and forensic psychiatrist for research.
One thing he discovered while writing “Skin” was the lengths investigators go to when solving crimes, and how many are affected by their work. “When we think of police officers, we always think of them as brave and courageous. But at the end of the day, they are also just human beings.
“They are someone’s husbands or wives, fathers or mothers, sisters or brothers. And I hope this human element comes through in the novel,” Dass said.
He also had to delve within the dark world of serial killers, reading up on infamous names such as Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer. According to Dass, the case most similar to the one in his novel is that of Ed Gein, an American criminal popularly known as “the Butcher of Plainfield”.
Dass hopes to write more stories about Inspectors Aly and Raj, and aims for a trilogy at the very least. But don’t expect the next instalment anytime soon: he is currently taking a break from crime fiction.
Researching his novel’s dark subject matter has taken an emotional and psychological toll on him, and Dass said he needs some time to decompress. No surprise, then, that his next projects will be quite a departure: a short-story collection, and a love story.
“The love story is set in India and is inspired by visits to my grandfather’s village. Castes will be a major theme. I’m on the final rewrite of my manuscript now, and I hope to get it to a publisher soon,” he concluded.
‘Skin’ is available from local bookstores.