LoveReading Says
When Assistant Commissioner of Police Borei Gowda is assigned to solve the suspicious death of right-wing critic Professor Mudgood in Bangalore, he knows from experience there is more to the case than it first appears.
Hot Stage by Anita Nair, the third in the Inspector Gowda series, capably handles all the hallmarks of a good police procedural mystery. Grumpy inspector? Check. Meddling bosses? Check. Misdirections and red herrings? Check and check.
But where it differs from British police procedurals is that this novel captures the chaotic energy of modern India, with its bumper-to-bumper traffic, unfinished construction projects and wandering cows. Nair’s use of vivid detail brings to life the wildlife and the cuisine that Gowda experiences.
Gowda does his best to manage the vexing case as well as his complicated personal life, but doesn’t always succeed. His meddling upstairs tenant makes him suspicious, but he doesn’t know if his uneasiness is warranted or not. Hilariously, he teaches his team to say, “Something isn’t kosher,” but only after explaining what it means.
Nair is one of India’s most acclaimed authors, having written a wide range of books, including literary fiction, poetry, children’s literature and this crime series. Her books have been translated into thirty-two languages and adapted for screen, stage and radio.
I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say that the book has a happy ending, with Gowda providing a home for a dog that no one wants. Whether or not his dog helps him solve the next mystery remains to be seen.
Maureen Stapleton
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Hot Stage Synopsis
Borei Gowda is a splendidly grumpy, hard-drinking cop, an Indian Rebus with a complicated love life.
When elderly Professor Mudgood, a well-known rationalist and fervent critic of right-wing forces in India, is found dead in his home in Bangalore by his daughter, Assistant Commissioner of Police Borei Gowda is quite certain that this is a homicide.
Although all evidence points to the murder being politically motivated, the more Gowda delves into the case, the more convinced he is that it isn’t an assassination. As he and his team launch a parallel investigation, they stumble upon a secret and murky world where there are no rules or mercy. When Gowda’s hand is forced, he takes a calculated risk and infiltrates the sinister domain to bring the truth out into the open… Will he succeed? And at what price?
Vivid with detail and taut with suspense, Hot Stage is at once a cracking police procedural and an intense exploration of the squalor and vice that fester in the shadowy lanes of an urban sprawl.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781913394967 |
| Publication date: |
20th June 2024 |
| Author: |
Anita Nair |
| Publisher: |
Bitter Lemon Press |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
420 pages |
| Primary Genre |
Crime and Mystery
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| Other Genres: |
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About Anita Nair
Anita Nair is one of India’s most acclaimed authors whose oeuvre ranges from literary fiction to noir to poetry to children’s literature. Her books have been translated into thirty-two languages around the world and have been adapted for audio, the stage and the screen. She is the recipient of several prizes and honours including the Central Sahitya Akademi Award, the Crossword Prize and the National Film Award. Founder of the creative writing mentorship programme Anita’s Attic which has mentored over 125 writers, Anita Nair is also a High-Profile Supporter of the UNHCR. Anita Nair’s new novel is Hot Stage, third in the Borei Gowdanoir series.
More About Anita Nair
