Book: The Bombay Prince
Author: Sujata Massey
Pages: 400
Read on: Kindle
Read in: 4 hours
Plot Summary: November 1921. Edward VIII, Prince of Wales and future ruler of India, is arriving in Bombay to begin a fourmonth tour. The Indian subcontinent is chafing under British rule, and Bombay solicitor Perveen Mistry isn't surprised when local unrest over the royal arrival spirals into riots. But she's horrified by the death of Freny Cuttingmaster, an eighteen-year-old female Parsi student, who falls from a second-floor gallery just as the prince's grand procession is passing by her college.
Freny had come for a legal consultation just days before her death, and what she confided makes Perveen suspicious that her death was not an accident. Feeling guilty for failing to have helped Freny in life, Perveen steps forward to assist Freny's family in the fraught dealings of the coroner's inquest. When Freny's death appears suspicious, Perveen knows she can't rest until she sees justice done. But Bombay is erupting: as armed British secret service march the streets, rioters attack anyone with perceived British connections and desperate shopkeepers destroy their own wares so they will not be targets of racial violence. Can Perveen help a suffering family when her own is in danger?
Things I Liked:
1. This is the third book in the Perveen Mistry series, a series of historical murder mysteries set in and around Bombay in the early 1920s. We're read the previous two books in this series and enjoyed both of them. Reviews can be found by following these links to A Murder on Malabar Hill and The Satapur Moonstone.
2. Much like the previous books in this series, The Bombay Prince centres itself around a historical milestone- that of the Prince of Wales' (Prince Edward's) arrival and tour of India and the rising movement for Independence. A huge welcome parade is held for the Prince in Bombay and it is during this parade that a young college student- Freny Cuttingmaster- is found brutally murdered in her college lawn. So, the book has a decent mix of historical context, Bombay's cultural landscape of the early 1920s and a good enough murder mystery.
3. The investigative process in these books is always very "realistic". In the sense that the investigative process is in line with what a woman could or could not do in the early 1920s in India. So, there is not a lot of following people or rabidly questioning people, just getting information subtly out of the people who knew and studied or were friends with Freny Cuttingmaster.
4. The actual murder mystery is nicely done. There are a few red herrings, a couple of possible different motives that some people might have had to wanted Freny dead- even an angle of honour killing of sorts. So, it is not very obvious who wanted her dead and how she was killed.
5. I really enjoy reading about life in Bombay in these books. The books are quite well researched and offer a lovely glimpse into the lives of the Parsi community in Bombay during this period. In this book, for instance, the author highlights how the Parsi's were at the receiving end of hatred and violence by the "freedom fighters" because they were perceived to be "westernised" and "in choots with the British" just because they dressed differently and several prominent Parsis were in business with the British.
Things I Didn't Like:
1. The final reveal of the killer was a bit too sudden. The author had lined up several red herrings and then, suddenly, the case got solved and she figured out who the murderer was! I wish it was not done in such a rushed manner.
Rating: 4/5
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