A Murder at Malabar Hill

A legally-minded sleuth takes to the streets of 1920s Bombay in a fascinating new mystery.


Winner and Top Pick of the 2019 American Library Association Reading List for Mystery

Winner of the 2019 Mary Higgins Clark Award

Winner of the 2019 Lefty Award for Best Historical Novel

Winner of the the 2018 Agatha Award for Best Historical Novel

Finalist for the 2019 Shamus Award

Finalist for the 2019 Harper Lee Legal Fiction Prize 


'Marvelously plotted, richly detailed . . . This is a first-rate performance inaugurating a most promising series.' The Washington Post 


'Perveen Mistry has all the pluck you want in a sleuthing lawyer, as well as a not-so-surprising - but decidedly welcome - proclivity for poking her nose into the business of others. The pages do indeed fly.' The Globe and Mail


Introducing Miss Perveen Mistry, the star of an outstanding new crime series. This courageous, likeable and determined young lawyer-turned-sleuth will appeal to readers of Phryne Fisher and Precious Ramotswe in a stunning combination of crime and mystery set in 1920s Bombay.


Armed with a legal education from Oxford, Perveen Mistry has joined her father's law firm, becoming one of the first female lawyers in India. 


Mistry Law has been appointed to execute the will of Mr Omar Farid, a wealthy mill owner who has left three widows behind. But as Perveen examines the paperwork, she notices something strange: all three wives have signed over their full inheritance to a charity. What future will they have?


Perveen is suspicious, especially since one of the widows has signed her form with an X-could she even read the document? The Farid widows live in strict seclusion, never leaving the women's quarters or speaking to any men. With her own tragic history close to her heart, Perveen worries that the women are vulnerable to injustice.


As Perveen comes closer to the truth, tensions escalate to murder, the widows fall under suspicion and Perveen must figure out what's really happening on Malabar Hill. 


' . . . a splendid first instalment in what promises to be a memorable series.' The Wall Street Journal 


Published in the US as The Widows of Malabar Hill