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cmbohn's review
4.0
Inspector Ghote is tied up in a frustrating theft case that's going nowhere when his superior gives him a new responsibility - accompany an aging film star through Bombay's sex district. Eww. Ghote is not thrilled, but he has no choice. Surely he can put up with this for one night and get back to work. But things don't work out that way.
At their first stop he finds a murdered prostitute, strangled and beaten to death, and he sees the murderer. The problem is, he's the only one to see the suspect, and the man is a celebrity - the Sheriff of Bombay from the title. The position is largely a political one, with just a few real duties and lots of baby kissing and hand shaking, with an occasional bazaar opening thrown in. But the man is also a cricket star with a devoted following. How is Ghote going to put together a case that will stick? Especially since he's ordered not to question the suspect at all, but build a case without telling anyone what he's up to.
This is certainly different from the usual Inspector Ghote story, which doesn't make an effort to sanitize Indian life and society, but is rather a look at police work in the busy, multicultural metropolis of Bombay. But this one is full of the seamy side of life there. It's not really meant to be titillating. In fact, the prostitutes, from the 5 rupee gay girls to the high priced beautiful call girls, all get a chance to tell their story of how they got into the business and why they stayed. There are a few tragedies, here and there, but for most of the women, prostitution is a trade that they are happy enough to be in, since they don't see much else to choose from. The girl Munni is almost philosophical about it. She gets to have fun with many, many men, and if a few are not so nice, well, that happens sometimes.
Overall, it was a well done and engrossing book. If a few of the twists were a bit predictable, it was still a good read and I'm glad I found it.
At their first stop he finds a murdered prostitute, strangled and beaten to death, and he sees the murderer. The problem is, he's the only one to see the suspect, and the man is a celebrity - the Sheriff of Bombay from the title. The position is largely a political one, with just a few real duties and lots of baby kissing and hand shaking, with an occasional bazaar opening thrown in. But the man is also a cricket star with a devoted following. How is Ghote going to put together a case that will stick? Especially since he's ordered not to question the suspect at all, but build a case without telling anyone what he's up to.
This is certainly different from the usual Inspector Ghote story, which doesn't make an effort to sanitize Indian life and society, but is rather a look at police work in the busy, multicultural metropolis of Bombay. But this one is full of the seamy side of life there. It's not really meant to be titillating. In fact, the prostitutes, from the 5 rupee gay girls to the high priced beautiful call girls, all get a chance to tell their story of how they got into the business and why they stayed. There are a few tragedies, here and there, but for most of the women, prostitution is a trade that they are happy enough to be in, since they don't see much else to choose from. The girl Munni is almost philosophical about it. She gets to have fun with many, many men, and if a few are not so nice, well, that happens sometimes.
Overall, it was a well done and engrossing book. If a few of the twists were a bit predictable, it was still a good read and I'm glad I found it.
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