The Silversmith's Puzzle

April 1, 2025
March's Captain Jim and Lady Diana mysteries, set in the late nineteenth century, star Captain Jim Agnihotri, an Anglo-Indian former inspector with the Bombay Constabulary and current private eye, and his wife Lady Diana Framji, a high-ranking woman in India's Parsi community. In this novel, the fourth in the series, they try to save Diana's brother Adi from murder charges. The case against him is compelling--he was found holding a knife in the throat of a fellow silversmith, as the man, his coworker, lay dying on the factory floor. Their investigation reveals that the silversmith stole from the company, tightening the case against Adi. Their own investigation is hampered by the fact that Diana's community has rejected her for marrying Jim, whom they consider a half-breed, and won't cooperate. It's fascinating to see prejudice in both the British and the Parsi communities, and to see how the couple navigates these shoals. Readers new to the series should start with the first, Murder in Bombay (2020), since not much backstory is given here. Another intriguing read for fans of the series.

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April 15, 2025
A rakish sleuth and his sidekick spouse seek to exonerate her black sheep brother from a charge of murder. After exposing clever killers in colonial India, at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, and aboard a transatlantic ship, former Indian soldier and occasional sleuth James Agnihotri, aka Jim O'Trey, and Lady Diana Framji are back in London when another baffling whodunit presents itself. Diana's brother, Adi, who's sent James an urgent cable--"NEED HELP PLEASE COME"-- anxiously explains that he's the prime suspect in the murder of his business partner, silversmith Satya Rastogi. Solving the murder and exonerating Adi involves a return to Bombay, with Adi disguised as a woman. Captain Jim and Lady Diana's fourth adventure unfolds in short, titled chapters narrated by Jim in a jaunty first person, each adding a small piece to the complex solution. Jim's probe begins at Adi's factory, where surgical tools are made. The employees he questions seem frightened to talk to him. After he has a similar conversation with Bala Mali, the elderly gardener is brutally attacked. There's a hidden key in Satya's office that may unlock secrets. Subsequent interviews around the city paint a shady side of Satya, who's been secretly trying to borrow a large sum of money. A Zoroastrian temple and the imperial mint provide more clues. Diana, feeling the intense scrutiny of her family, is anxious to depart. But the solution comes only at the end of a long and winding road packed with historic detail and local color. A leisurely, decorous period mystery, gracefully told.

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