The Case of the Missing Servant

The most original detective in years. Picture Hercule Poirot with an Indian accent, eating chili pakoras and riding in an auto rickshaw. Tarquin Hall has captured India in a way few Western writers have managed since Kipling. India’s humor, commotion and vibrancy bursts from every page, exposing its vast, labyrinthine underbelly. Scintillating! – Tahir Shah, author of The Caliph’s House
A brilliantly written humorous tale that vividly captures the sounds, smells and foibles of modern India – Ayub Khan Din, writer of East is East
Lively and quick-paced … What Cara Black does for Paris, Hall achieves for India * Kirkus *
Tubby, ingenious and hilarious, Delhi’s most trusted PI, Vish Puri, is not easily forgotten. Properly disdainful of unoriginal crime-busters like Sherlock Holmes and James Bond, his unique methods of detection deserve to be widely known and feted – David Davidar, author of The Solitude of Emperors
Entertaining … Hall combines an insider’s insight with the eclectic eye of a good foreign correspondent … The very opposite of the “exoticism” of which this kind of fiction is often accused. Instead of escaping into “another world”, western readers are encouraged to see an unflattering reflection of their own values and desires * Financial Times *
This intriguing book is in essence a modern Indian take on the adventures of Agatha Christie’s famous detective Hercule Poirot … The detective certainly bears resemblance to his understated Belgian colleague … The vibrancy and the vastness of the Indian sub-continent, combined with the appeal of a solid thriller, certainly raise curiosity * Metro Eireann *
A seething slice of the sub-continent * The Times *
An amusing, timely whodunit … Hall has woven his impressive knowledge of India into a tautly constructed novel that is a highly readable introduction to the country for newcomers * Guardian *
India, captured in all its pungent, vivid glory, fascinates almost as much as the crime itself * Entertainment Weekly *
[Hall] captures his second country with grace and humor and creates a protagonist able to put more cases in his “conclusively solved” cabinet. An entertaining start (complete with expletives-included glossary) to a promising series * Library Journal (starred review) *

Tarquin Hall is a writer and journalist who has lived and worked in much of South Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the US. He is the author of Mercenaries, Missionaries and Misfits- Adventures of an Under-age Journalist; To the Elephant Graveyard; and Salaam Brick Lane- A Year in the New East End. He is married to the journalist Anu Anand and lives in Delhi and London.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.