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‘An immersive new entry in the recent flowering of India-set crime fiction’ Vaseem Khan on Blood Caste

‘Shylashri Shankar is a name to watch’ Kate Quinn, author of The Alice Network

Seven guests. One killer. Hyderabad, India; 1895. Seven guests are invited by the Premier Minister to the opulent Faluknama Palace to witness the sale of a rare diamond. They do not know each other, but each is hoping to secure something important from the weekend.

When their host fails to appear, Chief Inspector Soobramania – known as Soob – is asked to step in, and safeguard the near-priceless gem.

Meanwhile, a visitor from Scotland Yard brings Inspector Wilberforce – Soob’s counterpart in the British Residency Police force – news of a deadly revolutionary collaborator: none other than Soob himself. Wilberforce is forced to question everything he thinks he knows about the man as they head to the palace to arrest him.

But then a ferocious monsoon descends; the roads are washed out and with an escaped panther stalking them, everyone is trapped in the hilltop palace. When the jewel goes missing and a guest is murdered, only one thing is certain: both the killer and the diamond are still there.

With Soob suspected of treason to the Crown and the British police officers blinkered by fear and prejudice, will anybody be able to solve the crime before there is another victim?

A perfectly pitched historical crime thriller from a rising star of the genre, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie.