Bombay 1951, and Persis Wadia, the first female police detective, saves the life of the new defence minister of India. She shoots the assailant dead, but not before something horrendous happens ā someone very close to Persis is hit by a stray bullet, severely injuring them.
Desperate to avoid confronting this, and relegated from the case due to her involvement, Persis instead finds herself investigating the burned body of a man who had been shot in the head. As she pursues this case ā and unofficially the assassination attempt ā she finds herself heading to New Delhi, a place seemingly more deadly that Bombay.
Book Five of the Malabar House series, and itās really good to revisit Persis and company. Well, most of the company as my favourite character (no spoilers) is sidelined for almost the entire book. Their presence resonates through the whole story, but I did miss them. Which is kind of the point, and a sign of superb writing, so I should be praising Vaseem Khan for this. While this newā¦ situation has a lot going for it, I did rather like the old one.
Anyway, what about the rest of the book? If youāre a fan of the series, then Iāll say that you wonāt be disappointed. If not, then what to expect? A vivid description of recent history ā the partition of India and Pakistan ā that is never mentioned in schools these days, despite the repercussions still being felt today, the world of 1950s Bombay is brought vividly to life, along with its attitudes and tensions.
The plot, which I can probably most closely describe as a political thriller ā i.e. a thriller without elongated chase scenes and explosions ā and the mystery builds slowly with questions being revealed along the way, rather than being presented at the start. What begins as āWhy did someone try and kill the minister?ā and āWho killed the burned man?ā into something far more complex. I hestitate to call it a whodunnit as itās far more complex than that, but there is a good twist late in the day.
Vaseem Khan does a brilliant job of taking historical events and weaving a gripping fictional tale that mirrors the actual facts. This is a superb series of books and this one does not disappoint. Letās just hope thatā¦ somethingā¦ happens next timeā¦
City Of Destruction is out now in hardback and ebook. Many thanks for the e-copy via Netgalley.
The Malabar House Series:
In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel 