The Case of the Love Commandos

*Starred Review* Vish Puri of Delhi, head of Most Private Investigators, Ltd., is regarded by many (and himself) as the best private eye in India. Puri's closed cases for the month of June include delivering an enormous ransom and recovering a pampered pug from its kidnappers, as well as helping a celebrity chef with a hacked computer. The chef responds by treating Puri to a spirit-transforming plate of papri chaat and tamarind chutney. Puri's love of food and Hall's descriptions of the dishes he enjoys is one of the delights of this series. From pampered pugs to hacked computers, Puri is plunged into a much more serious investigation at the behest of one of his operatives, a member of a real group called the Love Commandos, dedicated to helping mixed-caste couples. The Love Commandos have engineered the rescue of a young woman of the high-caste Thakur family from an arranged marriage. The young woman wants to marry an untouchable Dalit boy. The young man goes missing. Puri and his operatives infiltrate the Dalit boy's home in a tiny Indian village, so traditional that schoolchildren automatically arrange themselves according to caste. As in any Puri novel, a great deal of humor about Puri's family life is mixed with skillful plotting and realistic descriptions of contemporary India's overflowing street life. Hall, a British journalist who has lived in South Asia for more than a decade, is also the author of the memoir Salaam Brick Lane.--Fletcher, Connie Copyright 2010 Booklist

In Hall's thought-provoking and charming fourth mystery featuring PI Vish Puri (after 2012's The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken), a young Delhi couple's plan to marry runs afoul of the bride's powerful father, who objects to his future son-in-law's low caste. The Love Commandos of the title, a group of volunteers who help couples divided by caste, intervene. The festering rot caused by India's caste system permeates every page, as do the corruption of officials and the systemic abuse of the Dalits, the former Untouchable caste. In addition, a pickpocket with a nagging wife attracts the attention of Mummy-ji, Puri's mother and unwelcome co-investigator. This series has dealt with progressively more serious topics, but Hall, the author of Salaam Brick Lane and two other works of nonfiction, hasn't lost his light touch. The recipes at the end are a bonus. Agent: Christy Fletcher, Fletcher & Co. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Vish Puri becomes embroiled in a modern-day Romeo and Juliet story set in India. As she is wont to do, his mother helps investigates in her own inimitable style. Do try Hall's fourth entry (after The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken) in his charming and gently humorous series. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Vish Puri (The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken, 2012, etc.) helps a couple whose mutual affection is thwarted by India's rigid caste system. No one knows why Puri's female operative, known to him as Facecream, has joined the Love Commandos, a group dedicated to helping intercaste couples marry over their parents' objections. But it's in her commando role that she sneaks Tulsi, a Thakur girl, out of her final exams to elope with her lover, Ram, a Dalit, or untouchable. By the time they get to his hiding place, Ram has disappeared, and Facecream must turn for help to her boss, who's about to leave for Jammu to visit the Vaishno Devi shrine. He bids his wife, Rumpi, and his Mummy-ji farewell on their train and heads to Lucknow instead to look for Ram's family. When Puri discovers that his wallet is missing, Mummy-ji searches her train for the man who bumped her son in the aisle as the detective sets off for the Dalit ghetto of Govind, Ram's village. There, he discovers that Ram's mother has been killed and her body dumped in a canal. Tulsi's father, Vishnu Mishra, is arrested for the crime, but Puri has his doubts. He sends Facecream to pose as a teacher at the village school while he tries to find out more about the Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, a shady multinational corporation that's been drawing blood samples from the local Dalit population. At Jammu, Mummy-ji tails the pickpocket, who she's sure means to do more mischief at the shrine. Soon, it's a race between the detective and his mum to see who'll be first to see justice done. Once again, India's Most Private Investigator solves his case with panache.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

*Starred Review* Vish Puri of Delhi, head of Most Private Investigators, Ltd., is regarded by many (and himself) as the best private eye in India. Puri's closed cases for the month of June include delivering an enormous ransom and recovering a pampered pug from its kidnappers, as well as helping a celebrity chef with a hacked computer. The chef responds by treating Puri to a spirit-transforming plate of papri chaat and tamarind chutney. Puri's love of food—and Hall's descriptions of the dishes he enjoys—is one of the delights of this series. From pampered pugs to hacked computers, Puri is plunged into a much more serious investigation at the behest of one of his operatives, a member of a real group called the Love Commandos, dedicated to helping mixed-caste couples. The Love Commandos have engineered the rescue of a young woman of the high-caste Thakur family from an arranged marriage. The young woman wants to marry an "untouchable" Dalit boy. The young man goes missing. Puri and his operatives infiltrate the Dalit boy's home in a tiny Indian village, so traditional that schoolchildren automatically arrange themselves according to caste. As in any Puri novel, a great deal of humor about Puri's family life is mixed with skillful plotting and realistic descriptions of contemporary India's overflowing street life. Hall, a British journalist who has lived in South Asia for more than a decade, is also the author of the memoir Salaam Brick Lane. Copyright 2013 Booklist Reviews.

Vish Puri becomes embroiled in a modern-day Romeo and Juliet story set in India. As she is wont to do, his mother helps investigates in her own inimitable style. Do try Hall's fourth entry (after The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken) in his charming and gently humorous series.

In Hall's thought-provoking and charming fourth mystery featuring PI Vish Puri (after 2012's The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken), a young Delhi couple's plan to marry runs afoul of the bride's powerful father, who objects to his future son-in-law's low caste. The Love Commandos of the title, a group of volunteers who help couples divided by caste, intervene. The festering rot caused by India's caste system permeates every page, as do the corruption of officials and the systemic abuse of the Dalits, the former Untouchable caste. In addition, a pickpocket with a nagging wife attracts the attention of Mummy-ji, Puri's mother and unwelcome co-investigator. This series has dealt with progressively more serious topics, but Hall, the author of Salaam Brick Lane and two other works of nonfiction, hasn't lost his light touch. The recipes at the end are a bonus. Agent: Christy Fletcher, Fletcher & Co. (Oct.)