Review: A Nest of Vipers

A Nest of Vipers by Harini Nagendra
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Hooter: Our lady detective stumbles onto a case of a disappearing magician.

Harini Nagendra continues to build on her Bangalore Detectives Club series at consistent pace with the third book out in the series. Sticking to the premise of early 20th century Bengaluru with our protagonist Kaveri and her regular crew that grow on you, the book continues to give you a flavour of Indian history and cultural nuances of the yester year. Well researched, the author does let you know when she has taken civil liberties with history for the storyline.

Coming back to the main theme of mysteries and crime capers - this wouldn't stand out as the most exciting mystery you have stumbled onto just as the protagonist stumbles onto the plotline helped by the author as things coincidentally line up. That said, Harini is trying to drive multiple storylines (introducing the freedom movement) in her current offering which is a bold attempt and a decent one at that. I'll leave it to the reader so I don't ruin it with any potential spoilers.

For me, its like Swami and friends from Malgudi Days - PG version of adventure set in historical Bengaluru.

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