British men have quite a presence when it comes to foreign mysteries in countries that used to be European colonies: There鈥檚 Alexander McCall Smith with his 鈥�The No. 1 Ladies鈥� Detective Agency鈥� series set in Botswana, John Burnett鈥檚 Thai novels starring detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep, and Colin Cotterill鈥檚 nifty mysteries featuring retired coroner Dr. Siri Paiboun. Tarquin Hall, whose fourth Vish Puri novel is now out in paperback, belongs with the best of the bunch.
In 鈥淭he Case of the Love Commandos,鈥� the rotund and much put-upon Puri 鈥� 鈥�India鈥檚 Most Private Investigator鈥� 鈥� investigates the disappearance of an 鈥淯ntouchable鈥� young man who tries to get married to a high-caste woman with the help of an underground organization.
With a sympathetic and often-twinkling eye, Hall paints vivid portraits of the characters and India itself in all their chaotic and larger-than-life gusto. Puri鈥檚 mother, Mummy-ji, is especially delightful, as is the private eye鈥檚 assistant, a young Nepali woman nicknamed Facecream. And Puri, known as 鈥淐hubby鈥� to his family, is a charming creation.
Underneath the humor, however, is a serious look at the cost of prejudice. Like the romance at its center, 鈥淭he Case of the Love Commandos鈥� is more than a lark.
