The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken: Book summary and reviews of The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken by Tarquin Hall

The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken Summary

Dubbed "a wonderfully engaging P.I." (The Times, London), Tarquin Hall's irresistible protagonist Vish Puri has become an international favorite through a series that "splendidly evokes the color and bustle of Delhi and the tang of contemporary India" (Seattle Times). Now the gormandizing, spectacularly mustachioed sleuth finds himself facing down his greatest fears in an explosive case involving the Indian and Pakistani mafias.

When the elderly father of a top Pakistani cricketer playing in a new multimillion-dollar cricket league dies frothing at the mouth during a post-match dinner, it's not a simple case of Delhi Belly. His butter chicken has been poisoned. To solve the case, Puri must penetrate the region's organized crime, following a trail that leads deep into Pakistan - the country in which many members of the P.I.'s family were massacred during the 1947 partition of India. The last piece of the puzzle, however, turns up closer to home when Puri learns of the one person who can identify the killer. Unfortunately it is the one person in the world with whom he has sworn never to work: his Mummy-ji.

With riotously entertaining prose, a boisterous cast of characters, and a pitch-perfect sense of place, Tarquin Hall has crafted a gripping whodunit that takes us deep into Indian history and society. He brings a hugely appealing culture to life with all its sights, sounds, smells, foods, and complexity. As the title implies, The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken is a succulent read by a writer at the top of his game.

The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken Reviews

"Starred Review. Well-drawn colorful characters bolster a whodunit sure to appeal to those who enjoy a dash of humor with their crime." - Publishers Weekly

"Starred Review. A thoroughly engaging series... Hall has a gift for conveying the rich stew of competing cultures in contemporary India with a wonderful economy of image... Hall presents a complex hero in a complex country with a great deal of history, humor, and panache." - Booklist

"India, captured in all its pungent, vivid glory, fascinates almost as much as the crime itself." - Entertainment Weekly

"Hall writes amusing mysteries... [his] affectionate humor is embedded with barbs." - The New York Times Book Review

"Splendid... Entertaining... Vish Puri is large, constantly hungry, a perpetual victim of Delhi's traffic congestion, and a wonderfully engaging PI... A joy to read." - The Times (UK)

"Hall takes the reader into a very Indian, very Delhi web of spirituality, sin, slums, and power broking, but all treated with a veneer of wit and intelligent absurdity." - India Today

"Modern India, in all its colorful squalor, provides a vivid backdrop for this well-crafted whodunit." - Buffalo News

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Tarquin Hall Author Biography

Tarquin Hall is a British journalist and writer based in London and Delhi. In addition to his Vish Puri mysteries he has also written three works of non-fiction, Mercenaries, Missionaries & Misfits, To the Elephant Graveyard and Salaam Brick Lane.

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