Blurb:

When 27-year-old Kush Singh’s domestic help Leena is accused of murdering her husband, the ill-tempered inspector wants to see her imprisoned. Struggling to cope with a fall-out with his wife, a distracted Inspector Singh aka KP turns a deaf ear to Leena’s pleas. A corpse in a gunny sack, a besotted lover, a bankrupt businessman, and a group of agitated employees add to the complications of this mysterious case. Will Singh be able to investigate objectively and get justice for the victim? Set in Mumbai, The Murder in the Rain is a fast-paced thriller introducing the erratic Inspector KP Singh.

Review: 

A grumpy but super intelligent police inspector, a corpse within a gunny sack in a pond, a twisted plot, illegitimate liaisons, high flying ambitions and a thriller set in Mumbai. How else to begin the festive season, if I may ask?

Moitrayee Bhaduri is an accomplished writer of the ‘Mili Ray’ series of detective books. I’ve read one of them, ‘Who Killed The Murderer?’ and had liked it much. This prompted me to pick up ‘The Murder In The Rain,’ first of a ten parts ebook series by Moitrayee, involving a new protagonist – Inspector K P Singh. I must mention that I loved Mili Ray as a detective because she was such a layered and mysterious character, nonetheless, the rare female detective in Indian fiction. While I was hoping to read more of Mili Ray books, here comes the new one, Inspector K P Singh. Why not read this series of ten mini thrillers and find out what K P Singh is all about, while I wait for more of Mili Ray stories.

I would not divulge any spoilers here, but the story begins well as a whodunnit when middle class businessman Rakesh Ponkshe is murdered by two men and his corpse thrown into a pond to eliminate evidence. Rakesh’s wife Leena’s only ambition in life is to get their son Tinu admitted in a ‘good English Medium school.’ But, who does she call right after Rakesh is killed? Coincidentally, Leena is the fill-in domestic help at K P Singh’s, who lives alone since his wife left him for his brother. Ouch. Since this is a novella, we don’t get more of K P Singh’s story, they are probably reserved to be revealed gradually over the other novellas.

So, who killed Rakesh and why? Well, you’ll obviously have to read the book to find out. I liked the climax and the couple of twists involved there. The story has a pace and is perfect like a delicious midnight snack that you devour fast before anyone else finds out. My only complaint is that, the pace turned a little into rush since there was no scope of expansion. The character sketches did leave me wanting to know more, felt incomplete at a few scenes, especially about K P Singh and his wife Avni. I know it is deliberate on the author’s part to include them in the sequels. Probably I’m still a bit of old school to love shorties, but I might get used to them.

Recommended if you love thrillers and a cranky detective.

My Rating: 4/5

About the Author: 

Moitrayee Bhaduri is an author, screenwriter, and content specialist. She loves reading crime thrillers as much as she enjoys writing them. Her first book, The Sinister Silence (2015), introduced the feisty private detective Mili Ray. Before switching to a full-time writing career, Moitrayee worked with organisations like IBM, Deloitte, Oracle and RS Software, among others, for 15 years. An alumna of Loreto College and Jadavpur University, Moitrayee also has a certificate in Creative Writing from the University of Oxford. Currently a resident of Kolkata, Moitrayee divides her writing time between Mumbai and Kolkata. She is passionate about music, and loves dogs. She blogs at www.itsmyworld-moitrayee.blogspot.com.

Book Details: 

Language: English,  Genre: Fiction / Thriller

Author(s): Moitrayee Bhaduri

Publisher: Srishti Publishers and Distributors, Year Published: September 2020

Format: Kindle, Edition: First, Pages: 28

ASIN : B08FDFPSXK

Buy this book from Amazon and show some love!

 

I am taking my blog to the next level with Blogchatter’s #MyFriendAlexa. 

With the advent of this wonderful #MyFriendAlexa campaign, I hope to take my rank to a whole new level and in the process enjoy reading a lot of beautiful blogs. My reading hashtag is #ReadByPRB, and writing is #PRBWrit. Do follow and let’s connect on Twitter?