Full disclosure: I love Scott Sigler. He's an incredibly talented writer whose work I have enjoyed for a long time, but he's also a good friend and I love spending time with him. So, when I was visiting San Francisco a couple of weeks ago and I had the chance to talk to him about his upcoming novel, Nocturnal, I leapt at the opportunity.
A day or two before I left Atlanta, I asked him for whatever information he had on Nocturnal, so I could prepare a few questions. In what I can only assume was a test of my endurance, he sent me a pre-release copy of the book itself. I looked at the 750-page PDF and wondered how much I'd be able to get through in the few short days I had before I interviewed him. Hopefully enough to make for some good questions.
I picked it up and read 500 pages straight through. I couldn't put it down. It was finished two days before my interview.
Nocturnal is, on the surface, a buddy cop procedural murder mystery. Homicide detectives Bryan Clauser and “Pookie” Chang investigate a series of horrific murders in San Francisco. When Clauser finds himself dreaming about the murders before they happen, he starts to question his own sanity. As he and his partner dig deeper, they find themselves wrapped in a dark underworld of monsters, horror and chaos in their search to find a truth they can barely believe.
Like most of Sigler's work, Nocturnal is dark, exciting, funny and smart. It's like that weird guy in high school you always wanted to date, just so you could talk to your friends about it later. From the depth of the characters Sigler builds, to the detailed world he creates under the surface of San Francisco (literally in some cases) this book is gripping, terrifying and heartwrenching all at once.
I talked to Sigler a little about the book, his process and his handling of science and skepticism in his writing. You can listen via the YouTube below. Enjoy!
Nocturnal will be here on April 3. And, if you hurry, Scott's running a sweet pre-order contest for free stuff! Also: Scott's going to be on tour starting next month so go say hello if he's near you and tell him Maria says he's ridiculous. He'll understand 🙂
Sigler portrait courtesy Placido P. D'Souza
Thanks for the interview! And also, I promise to get that knife back to you soon.
Fantastic interview and that drawing of Scott is great!