Set in the eponymous Indian city just after World War I, the green shoots of India’s desire for independence are pushing through. Superintendent Christian Le Fanu is in self-imposed exile from England, and is summoned to investigate when the body of a white woman is found in one of the city’s insanitary canals. Sensing the possible political repercussions, Le Fanu must walk on egg-shells, and he discovers that it’s not the Indians who are corrupt but his white countrymen. The ex-pat community’s veneer of respectability conceals a plethora of crimes – some small, others truly evil. Le Fanu is a completely credible and fully fleshed-out character, and the sights, sounds and smells of a vibrant colonial past are described with wit and conviction. Our full review is here.
