Murder and more! Wow!

-

Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March    

*****



I don't know why I'm so enamored with historical fiction/mysteries set particularly in the Indian subcontinent. But I am totally hooked! Amidst the Indian struggles for Independence, the influence of the East India Company and the results of British rule, there's much to set as a background that beckons.
In this mystery, placed mostly in Bombay (now Mumbai) of 1892, an injured illegitimate Eurasian soldier formerly of the Fourteenth Light Dragoons, until recently stationed in Burma and the Northwest Frontier, Captain James Agnihotri, is recovering from terrible injuries incurred in Karachi. James reads a newspaper report about the suicides of two young women and decides there are too many loose ends. He's particularly struck by a letter to the editor written by the husband of one of the women. The young man proclaims, "They are gone but I remain."  Sentiments of grief James can relate to, particularly after Karachi. He determines to call on his inner Sherlock Holmes to do all he can to investigate the truth of the matter. Firstly as an investigate journalist and then as a Private Investigator for  James takes up the baton.
Captain Jim's quest takes him inside the workings of a warm and wealthy Zoroastrian Parsee family, the Framji's, whom he comes to admire, even as he falls further into danger and intrigue. For the reader it's a trip through the Anglo-Indian politics and cultural etiquettes of the day. Along with a journey of prejudices, "Indians did not tolerate the mingling of races any more than the English." The power of the British Raj in certain places hovers in the background, in others it has no jurisdiction. Jim falls in love but must remain aloof. He finds a family and looses it. He finds himself! So many wonderful characters from the young girl he adopts as a sister to the determined young woman he cares for.
A radiant, emotionally satisfying read that unravels towards a rewarding and complex end. 

A St. Martin's Press ARC via NetGalley 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Things aren’t as they seem!

-
Image
A Murderous Tryst  (Beatrice Hyde-Care Mystery #11) by Lynn Messina    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Oh my! Bea certainly has a lot to contend with. Bea’s rattled! The Duke has been missing from their bed for a night. When a distraught Bea come downstairs the next morning she finds her beloved husband Damien clasped in the arms of a glamorous female. A female who turns out to be Kesgrave’s first mistress, Mrs. Penelope Taylor! What?! Of course Bea’s heart sinks and she falls back on her painful memories of Aunt Vera’s responses to such a situation. Bea is both shaken and traumatised, but determined not to show it.  It seems Penny has been accused of murder. Actually  Penny’s desperately trying to avoid Newgate.    As a former mistress Penny does the unthinkable thing in society’s eyes. She asks for help from Bea. Bea’s response is just as shocking. She says yes. Kesgrave is as usual inscrutable. Of course this is the beginning of a harebrained chase, complications between Bea  and Amien,  and an investiga
Read more

Women in war—Internment by the Japanese 1942-45.

-
Image
Sisters Under the Rising Sun  by Heather Morris    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A fitting tribute to the women interred by the Japanese in Indonesia and Malaya during 1942 until liberation in 1945. Amongst the internees are a group of Australian Army nurses who were not given recognition by the Japanese as members of the armed forces and therefore not prisoners of war according to the Conventions of war.  Sister Vivian Bullwinkle is the only survivor of the massacre of a group of soldiers and nurses on Radji Beach, Bangka Island near Sumatra  in 1942, after the sinking of  HMS Vyner Brooke. There are a number of civilian prisoners in the camps like Norah Chambers and her sister Ena.  Combined, the story of these women interred under terrible conditions, their struggles and achievements are monumental.  Their gifts to their fellows beyond speech. Music plays an important part in uplifting the prisoners’ spirits. It’s truly a privilege to read about their plight, their vows to each other, and their braver
Read more

The Three Muscateers—three widows, three sets of different circumstances

-
Image
The Widows' Wine Club  by Julia Jarman    ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Different enough to be interesting but I kept losing which character was which. I almost feel I need to read it again to follow who’s who. I do know that three women came together to form a support group, going to the pub for lunch etc. Better than the local widow’s group in the church hall.  All three had recently lost their husbands and now had to find a way to face their new lives. Viv Halliday is a knowledgeable gardener. Zelda Fielding is setting herself up with internet dates and searching the web for her unknown father. Janet had a controlling husband who it turned out was having affairs, and their son is just as controlling. How their lives unfold is the new challenge. A Boldwood Books ARC via NetGalley.                                               Many thanks to the author and publisher.
Read more