
India’s only female lawyer, Perveen Mistry, is compelled to bring justice to the family of a murdered female Parsi student just as Bombay’s streets erupt in riots to protest British colonial rule. Sujata Massey is back with this third installment to the Agatha and Mary Higgins Clark Award-winning series set in 1920s Bombay.
November, 1921. Edward VIII, Prince of Wales and future ruler of India, is arriving in Bombay to begin a four-month tour. The Indian subcontinent is chafing under British rule, and Bombay solicitor Perveen Mistry isn’t surprised when local unrest over the royal arrival spirals into riots. But she’s horrified by the death of Freny Cuttingmaster, an eighteen-year-old female Parsi student, who falls from a second-floor gallery just as the prince’s grand procession is passing by her college.
Freny had come for a legal consultation just days before her death, and what she confided makes Perveen suspicious that her death was not an accident. Perveen, who strongly identified with Freny—another young Parsi woman fighting hard against the confines of society’s rules and expectations—feels terribly guilty for failing to help her. Perveen steps forward to assist Freny’s family in the fraught dealings of the coroner’s inquest, and when Freny’s death is ruled a murder, Perveen knows she can’t rest until she sees justice done. But Bombay is erupting: as armed British secret service march the streets, rioters attack anyone with perceived British connections and desperate shopkeepers destroy their own wares so they will not be targets of racial violence. Can Perveen help a suffering family when her own is in danger?
MY REVIEW:

The Bombay Prince by Sujata Massey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Bombay Prince by Sujuta Massey is a Soho Crime publication.
I love this series. Perveen is a wonderful character, and I was very much looking forward to this installment, though it took me a while to get it squeezed into my reading schedule.
This third installment is centered around the Prince of Wales’s visit to India. Protests are in the works, planned to coincide with the prince’s arrival in Bombay. Perveen is made aware of the protest when she is approached by a young Parsi university student, Freny Cuttingmaster, for advice about participating in the protest.
When Freny is murdered, Parveen feels responsible and launches an investigation into her death. Her efforts are fraught with danger, more so than usual, as the city has erupted in political unrest…
This installment is a bit of a slow mover, as the author lays out the political unrest of the times, but the tension builds, all the same, as the atmosphere is quite unsettling. Perveen walks a tightrope in pursuit of justice, while also coping with her feelings for a man she will never be able to form a relationship with until the laws change.
Although there were times when the story was a little too wordy, and the momentum suffered as a result, with patience, it becomes clear why it was necessary to include those passages, which didn’t seem all that important, at the time.
The conclusion was definitely a well-crafted surprise and I doubt anyone would have been able to guess the outcome in advance. I was pleased with other developments in the story, too- which could open possibilities for Perveen on both a personal and professional level. I’m curious to see how these threads will proceed and hope to hear from Perveen again soon.
4 stars
GRAB A COPY HERE:
https://www.amazon.com/Bombay-Prince-Perveen-Mistry-Novel-ebook/dp/B08HKTRDFW/
https://www.amazon.com/The-Bombay-Prince/dp/B08YLQG7XT/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-bombay-prince-sujata-massey/1137596527
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Sujata Massey is the author of historical and mystery fiction set in Asia. She is best known for the Perveen Mistry series published in the United States by Soho Press and in India by Penguin Random House India.