- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Carroll & Graf (Aug 7 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0786710594
- ISBN-13: 978-0786710591
- Product Dimensions: 22.5 x 14.5 x 2.7 cm
- Shipping Weight: 386 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,459,163 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
In an impressive debut, British author Cleverly weaves an engrossing tale of serial murder and the impending decline of the British Empire into a well-written fair-play mystery set in 1920s India. Commander Joe Sandilands, a Scotland Yarder completing a stint with the Bengal Police, is on his way back home when the provincial governor asks him to look into the recent death-by-suicide of an army officers young wife. Nancy Drummond, a close friend of the dead woman, reveals that four other officers wives have also died¢apparently by accident or misadventure¢over a period of 12 years, all in the month of March. Sandilandss investigation reveals further disturbing similarities; the cause of death in each case was the victims greatest phobia, and an unknown person has marked the anniversaries of their passing by placing a Kashmiri rose on their graves. With Drummond as his assistant and love interest, the detective probes beneath the surface of a society attempting to replicate pre-WWI England in a very different milieu. The political tensions of the time are more than mere background dressing, while the clash of cultures is instrumental to the plot. The likable and plausible Sandilands and other characters, both British and Indian, come across as living, breathing people. The killers motivation proves to be more baffling than his identity, but the solution is satisfying, as is Sandilandss handling of the ethical issues that his uncovering of the truth has raised. Classic whodunit fans should look forward to Cleverlys future efforts.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
In the 1920s, a serial killer targets the wives of Britons attached to the military Bengal Greys near Calcutta. Disguised as accidents, the murders go undetected until the latest, the purported suicide of a young wife, finally attracts the attention of investigator Joseph Sandilands. Recognizing common threads in all five deaths, he dives into a thorough investigation that revisits all the crime scenes. A strongly evocative narrative, sensitive characterizations, artful dialog, and masterly plotting make for an excellent first historical, which won the Crime Writer Association's Debut Dagger competition.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
a surprise ending,
By
This review is from: The Last Kashmiri Rose: Murder and Mystery in the Final Days of the Raj (Hardcover)
This book was not perfect, though I found it a great effort from a first-time novelist. I love mysteries, and I have always been fascinated by India, so this was a great combination. I didn't feel that the main character, Joe Sandilands, was as well-developed as I would like, and at the end of the book I still felt I didn't know him well, and didn't know what motivated him. I also felt his relationship with Nancy was a bit shallowly developed and not quite convincing.However I thought the mystery part was very well-developed and interesting, and while the identity of the killer became obvious about 3/4 of the way through the book I was stumped as to motive, and the motive as revealed at the end was a complete surprise to me. I do wish I knew what a previous reviewer considered to be a physical impossibility in the solution. If so I sure didn't spot it. :-) Anyway, never having been to India I guess I can be less critical of the less-than-authentic aspects mentioned. But I have recently read the 3-volume autobiography of author MM Kaye who was born and raised in India and spent much of her young adult life there as well. She was born in 1908 so her life coincided with the era of this novel. She frequently spoke of and referred to speaking Hindustani and said it was a shame no one seemed to speak in anymore as they had in her youth. According to her book Hindustani is NOT Hindi, but a language that combined elements of Hindi and Urdu, so I admit I just took that reference in the book for granted. Anyway, I still look forward to additional novels by Cleverly, and can't wait for the second to come out in paperback. I hope that we will learn more about Joe as the series progresses.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Somewhat expert thinking,
By Nancy L. (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Last Kashmiri Rose: Murder and Mystery in the Final Days of the Raj (Hardcover)
I lived in the state of Bihar in India from 1956 to 1959, when I was a child. Bihar is the state immediately to the west of Bengal, where The Last Kashmiri Rose is set, so I was interested to see how Barbara Cleverly handled her story. On the positve side she gets a lot of the factual stuff right, Bengali is the major language in Bengal, although Hindi (which she invariably calls Hindustani) is spoken by many. The plot is interesting, and the solution to the mystery is quite inventive; however, I ended up having a lot of problems with both the plot and the handling of India as a backdrop to the story. No one living in India would refer to Hindi as Hindustani repeatedly, 2 syllables are always better than 4; the younger Englishwomen's hair and dress lengths in 1922 are about 3 to 5 years ahead of what they would have been, but these are small things. I felt there was way too much of the happy darky syndrome, a la old Hollywood and the plantation slaves. India became independent in 1947, the book is advertised as the final days of the Raj, which is also not accurate, but not Cleverly's fault; however, even in 1922 all Indians across the board would not have been so happy to be servants, or villagers, or field workers, and not so deferential, or even submissive as they are pictured, particularly the Sikhs. One important plot twist centers around our hero, an interesting guy and a supposed English gentleman and his interest in one of the women in the story - his reactions to her are out of character, or, perhaps shallowly portrayed. The most important plot twist centers around the appearance of the killer, and Cleverly's solution, while interesting, is also physically impossible. Which gave me a lot of problems. Ultimately, if you're someone who knows India at all, this is probably not the book for you, but if you don't, it is, if you remain pretty uncritical, not a bad read.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Pukka concept, disappointing execution,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Last Kashmiri Rose (Mass Market Paperback)
Barbara Cleverly has done her research, all right; this mystery is chockfull of brand names, fashion details, and exotic flavors straight out of 1920s India. Her plot is solid, her setting is a winner, and her characters are only sometimes ripped off from Kipling. It's just too bad that Cleverly didn't bother to research the actual speech and behavior of the English in 1920s India, while she was at it. If you like to think of the past as being just like today, only in fancy dress, you'll love this book (and the clunky writing probably won't faze you, either). If anachronism grates on you, but you're still in the mood for plotty mysteries with a British-Empire setting, read Michael Pearce's Mamur Zapt series instead. *Please.*
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