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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A strong improvement on the first novel
Intrigue in India, circa 1920, in the elite and glittering world of the ultra-wealthy.
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
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:
Complicated
Again another great book, listened to in audible. The voice actor did an amazing job, the author pulled of a wonderful story keeping things fresh, but at the same time building on the previous book.
4 stars: Another enjoyable outing with Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant "Surrender-Not" Banerjee, this time investigating a royal murder outside their jurisdiction and with time running short. Abir Mukherjee has a gift for bringing the British Raj of the 1920s to life with vividly developed main characters, immersive settings and a clear-eyed portrayal of the deep divisions in India during the decline of Crown rule. The action and suspense drives the plot at a furious pace, and there is just enough humour and romance peppered in to lighten the mood when needed. This is a real page-turner, and it was hard to put down. Recommended for fans of crime fiction and historical fiction.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is nothing special. Unlike some of the others which I have rated this highly, it brings nothing new to the table, no fresh take or unique style which makes me love it as a work of art. It is simply the same old genre formula, executed perfectly. Our detective is plunged into a mystery in a world where they are out of their depth, danger lurks around every corner and the deaths begin to pile up, each piece of evidence casts a new slant on the mystery and those twists and turns continue right until the very end. It has nothing that elevates it above the Agatha Christie staple, but it is flawlessly done as a simple, old-fashioned period whodunnit.
I much preferred it to the first book in this series, which introduced Sam Wyndham as a bag of detective stereotypes (a cynic with a recently deceased wife and a drug addiction), and spent a little too long going on about them rather than developing his character in his actions. He becomes an interesting character as his relationship with 'Surrender-Not' (an English failure to pronounce an Indian name) becomes closer, the sergeant serving as a good contrast and foil to him, as does Annie Grant, who is also more interesting in a more active role (although the will-they-won't-they teasing is so constant that it becomes a little grating).
Whilst our cast felt two-dimensional in Calcutta, here they were placed in a dramatically different context and that allowed them to really explore their differences (even if some of the new cast were stereotypes themselves). Sam is particularly hard to pin down: he often seems to fall into white saviour trope, and yet here is racist and misogynistic in ways which are jarring and work against the rest of the book's attempts to make us warm to him as protagonist. It's an interesting choice, and feels like a deliberate one: it gives him room to grow, and at least makes him human, adding a sobring dose of the reality of the times. It will be interesting to see how our trio move forward as the series rolls on.
I much preferred it to the first book in this series, which introduced Sam Wyndham as a bag of detective stereotypes (a cynic with a recently deceased wife and a drug addiction), and spent a little too long going on about them rather than developing his character in his actions. He becomes an interesting character as his relationship with 'Surrender-Not' (an English failure to pronounce an Indian name) becomes closer, the sergeant serving as a good contrast and foil to him, as does Annie Grant, who is also more interesting in a more active role (although the will-they-won't-they teasing is so constant that it becomes a little grating).
Whilst our cast felt two-dimensional in Calcutta, here they were placed in a dramatically different context and that allowed them to really explore their differences (even if some of the new cast were stereotypes themselves). Sam is particularly hard to pin down: he often seems to fall into white saviour trope, and yet here is racist and misogynistic in ways which are jarring and work against the rest of the book's attempts to make us warm to him as protagonist. It's an interesting choice, and feels like a deliberate one: it gives him room to grow, and at least makes him human, adding a sobring dose of the reality of the times. It will be interesting to see how our trio move forward as the series rolls on.
Well, the first one certainly wasn't a fluke. This one is simply superb!
Seriously, this series is captivating. The historical and social settings are perfect, and the mystery fascinating.
Sam is getting more and more entangled with O, and no matter what he says, is a problem. Surrender-not keeps proving his worth as an investigator and becoming more a partner than a simple aide; meanwhile, Annie is being pursued by a prince. Yeah, Sam is not happy :P
In that regard, I think this quote is perfect to define Sam's attitude towards India and Hindus:
But the real protagonist here it's India and the tumultuous time just before its independence. I love how carefully we are shown the cultural subtleties of its people.
India with its monsoons, its vibrant and wonderful people, its cruelty and its mysticism... it's such a wonderful portrayal of an era...
I love how the mystery's solution depends on a real understanding of Indian culture and religion; how deeply rooted in tradition is the motive that leads to the murder.
A beautifully written historical novel with a great mystery and characters that ring true, what else could you wish from a book?
Oh! And Simon Bubb did a fantastic job with the narration =D
Seriously, this series is captivating. The historical and social settings are perfect, and the mystery fascinating.
Sam is getting more and more entangled with O, and no matter what he says, is a problem. Surrender-not keeps proving his worth as an investigator and becoming more a partner than a simple aide; meanwhile, Annie is being pursued by a prince. Yeah, Sam is not happy :P
In that regard, I think this quote is perfect to define Sam's attitude towards India and Hindus:
I forced myself to focus. Plenty of white men had native mistresses; hell, the woman I’d been keen on for the last twelve months was hardly lily-white, so why should it be different when an Indian man fell in love with a white woman? But it was different. It was something that every Englishman knew – or rather felt – because it was never taught to you explicitly. You just absorbed it, along with the rest of the rubbish about the superiority of the white man. And while I could discount most of that nonsense, it seemed that love between an Indian and an Englishwoman was something I couldn’t quite accept.Quite revealing, isn't it?
And then it struck me. I realised that what I found truly distasteful was not that an Indian should be attracted to a white woman – that, though undesirable, was at least understandable – but the idea that she might return his love. It wasn’t, I found, something I wished to dwell on, though whether that was from an aversion towards Miss Pemberley’s feelings or my own, I couldn’t say.
But the real protagonist here it's India and the tumultuous time just before its independence. I love how carefully we are shown the cultural subtleties of its people.
‘Hierarchies are odd things are they not, Captain?’ He smiled.
‘In what way, Your Highness?’
‘Take the three of us,’ he said, ‘a prince, a police inspector and a sergeant. On the face of it, our relative positions in the pecking order seem clear. But things are rarely that simple.’
He pointed towards the gates of the Bengal Club, which we were passing on our left. ‘I may be a prince, but the colour of my skin precludes me from entering that august institution, and the same goes for Bunty here. You, though, an Englishman, would have no such problem. In Calcutta all doors are open to you. Suddenly our hierarchy has changed somewhat, no?’
‘I take your point,’ I said.
‘But that’s not the end of it,’ he continued. ‘Our friend Bunty is a Brahmin. As a member of the priestly caste, he outranks even a prince, let alone, I fear, a casteless English policeman.’ The prince smiled. ‘Once more our hierarchy changes, and who is to say which of the three is most legitimate?’
‘A prince, a priest and a policeman drive past the Bengal Club in a Rolls-Royce …’ I said. ‘It sounds like the opening to a not very amusing joke.’
‘On the contrary,’ said the prince. ‘If you think about it, it is actually most amusing.’
India with its monsoons, its vibrant and wonderful people, its cruelty and its mysticism... it's such a wonderful portrayal of an era...
I love how the mystery's solution depends on a real understanding of Indian culture and religion; how deeply rooted in tradition is the motive that leads to the murder.
A beautifully written historical novel with a great mystery and characters that ring true, what else could you wish from a book?
Oh! And Simon Bubb did a fantastic job with the narration =D
I love Abir Mukherjee's writing style and occasional moments of humour, but this book took me so long to read because I just don't care about the central character at all. Pretty much all we know about Sam Wyndham is that he has a dead wife, some war-related trauma and an opium addiction. So far, so every noir hero ever invented. In addition, Sergeant Banerjee, who has the potential to be super interesting, remains completely undeveloped as a character.
It did inspire me to want to learn to do the Turkey Trot, because it looks like a blast.
It did inspire me to want to learn to do the Turkey Trot, because it looks like a blast.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
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
I really enjoyed the first in this series, but I just can’t get motivated to continue this one. I don’t really care about the main character this time around and could care less about the mystery. Very disappointed.