ARC Review: Bhendi Bazar by Visha Dhamija

1982. Three teenage girls planning a flight from the Soviet Union to the West end up being sold in Mumbai’s red-light area instead. The murders start a quarter of a century later. The victims are all men. All of them tricks, waiting for trysts with high-class escorts. DCP Rita Ferreira is quick to recognize the serial-killer strain; the media isn’t far behind. The news sends shock-waves through the city. The first serial killer in living memory of Mumbai is out on the streets. As Rita grapples to establish the killer’s pattern through Bhendi Bazaar, the killer gives her 24 hours to stop the next murder. Can she do that before she becomes the next victim?

I received a physical copy of the book via Rumor Books India in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book that I received from Rumor Books and you would be right in guessing that this is also a Crime and Thriller Novel. And the main reason I requested this book was because this has a female investigator.

And this was a wonderful read as well. I absolutely loved the plot – the detail that has been provided into the investigation style of the Indian police. This plot has two stories happening simultaneously – 1987 and 2007. These story lines seem to be parallel to each other without actually seeming to be connecting to each other.

The characters are wonderfully sketched and so individualistic that it was so much getting to know and grow with them throughout the story!

The plot itself – from 1987 to 2007 is absolutely detailed and the best thing about such a detailed plot is that a reader who is not from India can also understand the culture and workings of the Indian Police system.

I think Mr. Dhamija has also done a wonderful job of choosing a female DCP (Deputy Commissioner of Police) as his protagonist, not only cause it shows a wonderful character depth but also to understand the inner workings of basically a patriarchal society.

While some maybe turned off by the extra details provided by the author – for instance about the investigation and the characters – as was I, but trust me when I tell you, everything comes together in the end! Every single detail that seemed frivolous and unnecessary were the details that tied the mystery together and I fell in love with book by the end.

Brilliantly done, this book has made sure that I would definitely be reading more of Mr. Dhamija’s books 😀

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ .5

If you love crime, mystery and would love to know about the Indian culture that is hidden from the world and enjoy the experience while doing so, then definitely get this book!

Rumour Books India (RBI) is one of India’s youngest and leading publishing house, and is the only publisher from North India to have a national presence.
Founded in 2013 by Mr. Reekrit Serai and Ms. Radhika Panickar, RBI has, in the brief period since its inception, already scaled the bestsellers’ lists on Amazon, Flipkart, Crossword.