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A review by robinwalter
Murder Under a Red Moon by Harini Nagendra
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
I gave this second book in the series 4.75/5 for the depiction of the detective. It's rare for a series detective to make serious errors in judgement AND then admit them, but she did in this book. That's a big plus, because as a 19 year old, OF COURSE she's going to make mistakes like that. That welcome difference overcame the disappointment of a rather predictable and telegraphed villain. When THIS ulla da pattha can guess whodunnit, you know it's not the toughest nut to crack!
Besides that, this was another very interesting trip back to Bangalore in the 1920s. Once again the author paints a vivid picture of her hometown in that era, and once again, she seamlessly weaves sociopolitical issues like the position and role of women in Indian society, but without having her characters behave anachronistically, a BIG bête noir for me. The female characters who take the lead roles are progressive, but still function within the time, and the relationship of Kaveri and Ramu is another good example of this.
Like the first one did, this second story also weaves the growth of the independence movement in that time into the story in a way that adds depth to the characters without bogging the story down with sermonising.
An example of how she did this was the mention of Jallianwala Bagh. This is the second book in the series and both have mentioned that unfathomable, incomprehensible atrocity, but both times in context and without the sort of seething rage that would have been tonally inappropriate to the book, despite being 100%% understandable and justified - especially given how recently before the books' setting it occurred. I've bought the next one in the series and I see that it too references Jallianwala Bagh, so I hope the series sells well enough outside India to raise the profile of that ineradicable barbarity.
On a more positive note, as someone with family ties to Bangalore, I'm still hoping to see Whitefields feature prominently in the series one day. THe longer the author puts that off, the more of the series I'll have to buy 😂
Besides that, this was another very interesting trip back to Bangalore in the 1920s. Once again the author paints a vivid picture of her hometown in that era, and once again, she seamlessly weaves sociopolitical issues like the position and role of women in Indian society, but without having her characters behave anachronistically, a BIG bête noir for me. The female characters who take the lead roles are progressive, but still function within the time, and the relationship of Kaveri and Ramu is another good example of this.
Like the first one did, this second story also weaves the growth of the independence movement in that time into the story in a way that adds depth to the characters without bogging the story down with sermonising.
An example of how she did this was the mention of Jallianwala Bagh. This is the second book in the series and both have mentioned that unfathomable, incomprehensible atrocity, but both times in context and without the sort of seething rage that would have been tonally inappropriate to the book, despite being 100%% understandable and justified - especially given how recently before the books' setting it occurred. I've bought the next one in the series and I see that it too references Jallianwala Bagh, so I hope the series sells well enough outside India to raise the profile of that ineradicable barbarity.
On a more positive note, as someone with family ties to Bangalore, I'm still hoping to see Whitefields feature prominently in the series one day. THe longer the author puts that off, the more of the series I'll have to buy 😂