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marko68's review against another edition
5.0
‘We’d paid our price in blood and now, we proclaimed, Calcutta was a British city. Five minutes here would tell you it was no such thing. But that didn’t mean it was Indian. The truth was, Calcutta was unique.’ P29
Calcutta, 1919… the British Raj. A melting pot of colonialism, nationalistic culture and subjugation and the backdrop to Gandhi’s non-violent revolution that ultimately saw the end of British rule in the mid-20th century.
Such is the setting for Abir Mukherjee’s excellent novel, ‘A Rising Man’, first in the Captain Sam Wyndham series. And what an awesome read it is. Mukherjee delves deeply into the reality of the oppression, racism, segregation, and cultural divide that characterised much of British India. There are so many layers to everything that Mukherjee pivots this story around .. the layers of colonialism and the effects of the Empire are blatant and the value of hindsight in 2024 cannot be underestimated. However, I was left in a very reflective state, wondering how far we have really come. And while it’s easy to see the log in the eye, it’s much less easy to see the similarities or legacies of colonial attitudes that are subtle, damaging and deeply entrenched today. Sure there are the obvious discriminations and abuse of privileged power, but the subtle biases and behaviours that divide and separate are much more sinister and subversive.
“It was seductively easy to fall into the casual racism upon which the whole place was built”… p257.. ain’t that still the truth today?
A Rising Man centres around Captain Sam Wyndham, newly arrived in Calcutta following his own fair share of tragedy and suffering during World War 1. With very little left to live for, he finds himself in a post in the British Raj in the Indian Civil Service as a captain in the police force. Within two weeks, he is embroiled in a murder case that has its tentacles everywhere in an increasingly volatile political landscape.
His sidekick, Sergeant Banerjee is actually a powerful supporting actor and I can see this duo teaming up in future instalments in a powerful way. Banerjee, softly spoken, respectful and one who ‘knows his place’ is quietly resistant, offering up carefully chosen words to challenge the British ‘moral superiority’ and mindset.
I loved the way Mukherjee brings to light some of the historical elements of the time including the unbelievable massacre in Amritsar which I honestly had no idea about…
This was an excellent book. I can’t wait to read more. 5 stars.
Calcutta, 1919… the British Raj. A melting pot of colonialism, nationalistic culture and subjugation and the backdrop to Gandhi’s non-violent revolution that ultimately saw the end of British rule in the mid-20th century.
Such is the setting for Abir Mukherjee’s excellent novel, ‘A Rising Man’, first in the Captain Sam Wyndham series. And what an awesome read it is. Mukherjee delves deeply into the reality of the oppression, racism, segregation, and cultural divide that characterised much of British India. There are so many layers to everything that Mukherjee pivots this story around .. the layers of colonialism and the effects of the Empire are blatant and the value of hindsight in 2024 cannot be underestimated. However, I was left in a very reflective state, wondering how far we have really come. And while it’s easy to see the log in the eye, it’s much less easy to see the similarities or legacies of colonial attitudes that are subtle, damaging and deeply entrenched today. Sure there are the obvious discriminations and abuse of privileged power, but the subtle biases and behaviours that divide and separate are much more sinister and subversive.
“It was seductively easy to fall into the casual racism upon which the whole place was built”… p257.. ain’t that still the truth today?
A Rising Man centres around Captain Sam Wyndham, newly arrived in Calcutta following his own fair share of tragedy and suffering during World War 1. With very little left to live for, he finds himself in a post in the British Raj in the Indian Civil Service as a captain in the police force. Within two weeks, he is embroiled in a murder case that has its tentacles everywhere in an increasingly volatile political landscape.
His sidekick, Sergeant Banerjee is actually a powerful supporting actor and I can see this duo teaming up in future instalments in a powerful way. Banerjee, softly spoken, respectful and one who ‘knows his place’ is quietly resistant, offering up carefully chosen words to challenge the British ‘moral superiority’ and mindset.
I loved the way Mukherjee brings to light some of the historical elements of the time including the unbelievable massacre in Amritsar which I honestly had no idea about…
This was an excellent book. I can’t wait to read more. 5 stars.
domino911's review against another edition
5.0
I'm a little late to Abir Mukherjee but I'm glad I got here. 'A Rising Man' is set in 1919 Raj India, a period I know little about but which Mukherjee brings to life - the intense colours, the oppressive heat, the simmering violence; the racism, both institutional and casual, of the last decades of the British Empire.
Sam Wyndham, a policeman two weeks into his career in the colonial force in Calcutta, investigates the murder of a high ranking British official, a man apparently killed by terrorists seeking the end of British rule. But when the secret police seem a little eager to close the case, Sam, along with the pompous, racist Inspector Digby and Sgt. 'Surrender-Not' Banerjee, Indian-born and educated at Cambridge, suspects that there is more to the crime than initially appears. Mukherjee's dialogue is excellent and the characters all have distinct voices. He describes the locations, from dusty back streets to opulent colonial mansions to temples surrounded by lush jungle, with a deft touch. And along the way, he drops phrases worthy of Chandler - a carpet is "thick enough to suffocate a small dog", Wyndham "tried not to stare at her legs, which was difficult because they were fine legs and I appreciate these things" - and takes a few humorous pokes at his native Scotland, a country whose climate "is rather unpleasant for ten months of the year and downright inhospitable for the other two."
I enjoyed 'A Rising Man' thoroughly. It is a satisfying and entertaining detective story but also a commentary on British Colonial attitudes to, and treatment of, 'foreign' subjects; food for thought when those same attitudes and nostalgia for the days of Empire seem to be driving the Brexit movement in England. Second in the series already purchased and high on the TBR list.
Sam Wyndham, a policeman two weeks into his career in the colonial force in Calcutta, investigates the murder of a high ranking British official, a man apparently killed by terrorists seeking the end of British rule. But when the secret police seem a little eager to close the case, Sam, along with the pompous, racist Inspector Digby and Sgt. 'Surrender-Not' Banerjee, Indian-born and educated at Cambridge, suspects that there is more to the crime than initially appears. Mukherjee's dialogue is excellent and the characters all have distinct voices. He describes the locations, from dusty back streets to opulent colonial mansions to temples surrounded by lush jungle, with a deft touch. And along the way, he drops phrases worthy of Chandler - a carpet is "thick enough to suffocate a small dog", Wyndham "tried not to stare at her legs, which was difficult because they were fine legs and I appreciate these things" - and takes a few humorous pokes at his native Scotland, a country whose climate "is rather unpleasant for ten months of the year and downright inhospitable for the other two."
I enjoyed 'A Rising Man' thoroughly. It is a satisfying and entertaining detective story but also a commentary on British Colonial attitudes to, and treatment of, 'foreign' subjects; food for thought when those same attitudes and nostalgia for the days of Empire seem to be driving the Brexit movement in England. Second in the series already purchased and high on the TBR list.
piyali's review against another edition
4.0
I do not read a lot of police procedurals, I like thrillers. So for a reader of thriller, the crime solving in this book was a bit slow, however, I did not mind in the least since I immersed myself in the description of the background where the crime takes place. It is 1919 and ex Scotland yard copper Sam Wyndham is a newcomer to Calcutta, the hub of British rule. When an influential British officer is killed in a narrow alleyway behind a renowned brothel, Wyndham is called to solve the crime and bring the criminal to justice with the help of an Indian sergeant Surendranath (Surrender-not) Banerjee. The author does a fascinating job of integrating the history of armed freedom fighters of Bengal (terrorists according to the colonizers) with the plot, bringing to life the sentiment of the colonized and the complicated relationship of the colonizers and the natives who worked for them. Surrender-not is a beautifully etched out character who manifests the dichotomy of an Indian man, working for the Imperial Police force despite the injustice he witnesses in the treatment by the British against his countrymen. Having grown up with the history of freedom fighters and also the images of Calcutta in the early 20th century, this book was simply riveting for me. The characters were well developed with virtues and flaws. They were real. The relationships were believable, the complexities between the natives and the British were very well drawn out. It was a pleasure to read this well researched and well written story. I will certainly be looking forward to more adventures of Sam Wyndham and his trusted sergeant Surrender-Not.
piyali's review against another edition
4.0
All good things must come to an end and this book did too. It was as fascinating a read as it was the first time and it was amazing how much more I got out of the book second time around.
joe23driver's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
pinkneyandrew's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
yyc_heather's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this mystery about a British police detective in Calcutta during the Raj. One star off for the occasional speech anachronism - I don't think Brits in 1919 said "okay" or referred to "casual racism." But overall, a strong debut and I'm looking forward to the next one.
wran's review against another edition
2.0
Kalkutta 1919 - Sam Wyndham hat sich gerade von Scotland Yard nach Kalkutta zur Polizei versetzen lassen und muss sofort einen brisanten Mord aufklären. Direkt neben einem Bordell wurde einem einflussreichen britischen Finanzbeamten die Kehle aufgeschlitzt.
Der Klappentext klang vielversprechend und ich habe einiges über das Indien der Zwischenkriegszeit gelernt. Leider kann der Autor seinen Charakteren kein Leben einhauchen. Auf über 500 Seiten bleiben sowohl der Protagonist und Ich-Erzähler als auch die diversen Nebenfiguren viel zu klischeehaft und eindimensional. Dafür dass Sam Wyndham als hervorragender Polizist betrachtet wird, macht er zu viele offensichtliche Fehler, die meiner Ansicht nur dazu da sind, um den Plot voranzutreiben.
Auch das attraktive Setting nutzt der Autor nicht zu seinem Vorteil. Er beschreibt ein, zwei Verwaltungsgebäude, Restaurants und eine Opiumhöhle, es entsteht aber kein Eindruck von der Stadt Kalkutta und ihrer Atmosphäre insgesamt. Historisch und geographisch interessant, aber für meinen Geschmack zu wenig Spannung.
Der Klappentext klang vielversprechend und ich habe einiges über das Indien der Zwischenkriegszeit gelernt. Leider kann der Autor seinen Charakteren kein Leben einhauchen. Auf über 500 Seiten bleiben sowohl der Protagonist und Ich-Erzähler als auch die diversen Nebenfiguren viel zu klischeehaft und eindimensional. Dafür dass Sam Wyndham als hervorragender Polizist betrachtet wird, macht er zu viele offensichtliche Fehler, die meiner Ansicht nur dazu da sind, um den Plot voranzutreiben.
Auch das attraktive Setting nutzt der Autor nicht zu seinem Vorteil. Er beschreibt ein, zwei Verwaltungsgebäude, Restaurants und eine Opiumhöhle, es entsteht aber kein Eindruck von der Stadt Kalkutta und ihrer Atmosphäre insgesamt. Historisch und geographisch interessant, aber für meinen Geschmack zu wenig Spannung.
bookkate's review against another edition
4.0
Maybe could have been a little bit tighter, and some lines here & there sounded a little trite, but then other lines made me laugh out loud with their originality. Most of all, really, really liked the setting - it's set in a place & an era I knew NOTHING about and so greatly enjoyed this. The author (relatively unobtrusively) teaches the reader a lot about the culture, history, economics and politics of early 1900s India. The other highlight is the character of Surrender-not: great dry humor and sharp observations. He and Wyndham make a great duo.