A short thriller that, like its title, is intended to be a quick read for "airport thriller" as the author stated in the notes at the end of the book.

"One Night Stand" by Mukul Deva is a gripping tale set against the backdrop of Singapore's most notorious nightclub, Nostalgia. The story weaves through the lives of five distinct characters, each driven by their own dreams and haunted by their desires.
-Sayan Iyer, an ex-cop turned real estate mogul, struggles with memories of love and betrayal.
-Christina Tang, a socialite with a dark past, grapples with her complicated relationship with Sayan.
- Alex Khoo. Crime buster extraordinaire. Madly in love with Christina yet resents her leaving him for other men.
- Erik Espanto. Christina’s toy boy.
- Stella Lee. Gorgeous single mother, abandoned by fate and battered by life.

At least this is what the blurb states. But in truth, there are two other characters
I think Esther plays a very important role
she is the common factor in this whole story

there is another major player though only mentioned at the end, and because this is a thriller I do not want to give it away.

The narrative unfolds over the course of one fateful night, marked by a dance of death, deceit, and duplicity that leaves no one unscathed.
If you ever wondered what Karma is, then I suggest you read this book.

Things that I liked

- The diversity in the book: Usually thriller books are mostly white dominant. So to read one set in Singapore with such BIPOC characters was very exciting.

- The twists and turns: It is a quick read that occurs in one night, though there are flashbacks, so the events rather unfold quickly

- Everyone's a villain: I do not think this is a spoiler. the blurb basically gave it away. They are not good people and they certainly deserved what happened to them.

- The writing style: Deva's storytelling is both intense and thrilling, with a pace that mirrors the urgency of the characters' intertwined lives. However, the writing was simple with no overly complicated wordings. It is suitable for Non-speakers of English.

- character-driven: usually thrillers are mostly plot-driven, but this book is purely character-driven. you get into the psyche of the characters' thoughts and feelings. This is enhanced with the multiple POVs

What didn't work

- I know that this book was intended as a quick read, however the plot was very predictable and full of plotholes that you can see a mile away if you are a dedicated thriller reader. For an author who has written over 20 thriller books and has one soon to be adapted to screen, I found that lacking.
There are some actions done that were eye-role and you just go "how stupid are you!".

- Some POVs did not add anything to the plot. Alex, the almost 60-year cop, is so infatuated with Christina, his childhood love, it is humorous. Get over yourself man! You are a high-ranking Homicide detective and you didn't see that she was manipulating you all those years??? also, why was his POV important????

- The epilogue itself could have been a book by itself. It did not make sense especially when the author started throwing circumstantial information.
and it added more "Why"s to the story!

Overall, the book did what it intended to do
if you are looking for a quick thriller read to pass a waiting time, then this would be it.

A fun, engaging, and quick read. Was surprised with how quickly I found myself into the story. The characters were fascinating, the situations that the characters found themselves into were messy and crazy. This read was a guilty pleasure and I found myself saying 'just one more chapter. ' Thus was my first read by this author and guarantee it will not be my last.

#ONENIGHTSTAND
#NETGALLEY
#MUKULDEVA

⭐⭐⭐
One Night Stand by Mukul Deva was a different thriller. All activity is one night in Nostalgia, Singapore’s nightclub of all nightclubs. It's a quick read with some good twists.
I struggled to connect with the characters, none of them was particularly likable. It was strange how they all met in the club on that one particular night as they all are completely different age groups.

After the lead drummer's death, the club is a murder scene. There are many suspects as they all have motives. There are parts from the past explaining why things are in the way they are and giving some background information. Now the main question is - who is the guilty one?
The last twist left me with an open mouth!

I definitely recommend this as a quick read with a twisted ending.

Thank you, NetGalley and Cernunnos Books for this copy.

Thoroughly enjoyed this quick, but gripping thriller.
Because this is a short story meant to be read in one sitting, it is fast paced but i felt the characters personalities and motives were well fleshed out and i liked the twist at the end.

Thanks to Netgalley and Cernunnos Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Several super rich people who don’t necessarily like each other are in a nightclub in Singapore when the drummer in the band drops dead and foul play is suspected.

This was a short read that I ended up liking somewhat. Initially I couldn’t get into it because we were introduced to too many characters and I couldn’t keep them and their past relationships straight. But, as things unfolded and I got more grounded on who the characters were, it became more interesting. It was more than a whodunit. There was a lot more to the story than who killed the drummer. Overall a pretty good short read.

This was a quick and easy read. However, none of the characters are likeable but I wanted to know what happened to them nevertheless. Quick, fun read !

One Night Stand by Mukul Deva is unusual for a couple of reasons, firstly it's a murder mystery set in Singapore where murder is extremely rare.........and crime novels set there even rarer. More esoterically part of it is written from the point of view of a building. Don't worry about the latter,it actually works very well as a device to both set the scene and round of the book.

This a short but involving story about the murder of the drummer playing in a band at a Singapore Nightclub. Coincidentally,or not in some cases,the husband of a woman the deceased had a fling with is there,as is her Mother....who blames her former son-in-law for the supposedly accidental death of her daughter. When the police arrive the officer in charge is not only the former boyfriend of the mother-in-law but also the ex-boss of the son-in-law,himself a former policeman.

Well done if you've kept up with that,needless to say reading the book explains the contacts in a lot more depth and at greater length.
This is a short story but a lot goes on within its 146 pages and it would make a great movie with its complex relationships and many twists and turns. It's massively entertaining and a bit of an insight into Singaporean culture, a fascinating place that I've visited a few times and love.