The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken: Vish Puri, Most Private Investigator, Book 3

This is the third Vish Puri detective story, but my first read in the series. I didn't feel disadvantaged by not having read the first two books. I felt immediately immersed in modern Delhi, where gleaming skyscrapers filled with call centers sit next to street markets, cricket matches are the subject of wild enthusiasm (especially with the new feature of blonde American cheerleaders in skimpy outfits), and the streets are jammed with hair-raising kamikaze drivers––and the occasional cow. In today's Delhi, the status of money is beginning to replace the caste system, but the old world remains in the multi-generational households, arranged marriages, and religious rituals.

Vish Puri, affectionately called Chubby by his family, is the Boss of Most Private Detectives, assisted by a large group of operatives with colorful monikers like Tubelight, Facecream, Handbrake, Flush, and Chanel No.5. Even his beloved Mummy-Ji gets in on the sleuthing action on occasion––though against Puri's wishes.

As the story begins, Puri has been put on a diet by his wife, Rumpi. He'll do anything to make her happy, but he finds food irresistible. The descriptions of his meals were so mouth-watering I finally had to resolve not to read the book unless I had already eaten.

Puri has several cases on his plate (no pun intended): the murder (by poisoned Butter Chicken) of wealthy Pakistani Mr. Khan at a cricket federation dinner; allegations of cricket match fixing; and the "theft" of the long, luxuriant mustaches of two men.

Puri's adventures are comic, but author Tarquin isn't just playing for laughs. He doesn't turn a blind eye to the corruption in Indian society or its inequities, like an elderly servant who is made to sleep on her master's kitchen floor. The police force is inept (and worse), and Puri is himself hampered by VIP suspects who refuse to cooperate with his investigation and threaten him for daring to approach them. One thread of the plot goes back to the horrific days of the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, as Muslims fled north and Hindis and Sikhs south, with massacres of the refugees and abductions of women along the way.

What a pleasure to read a mystery with such charming, lively characters, and to be both entertained and educated. I listened to the audiobook and found its reader, Sam Dastor, to be a delight. His neutral narration was in a clear, British accent, and his characters' Indian-accented dialog seemed dead on.

RECIPE

The best Butter Chicken I ever had was at Amber India in Palo Alto, CA. Here's the recipe from that restaurant published some years back in the San Francisco Chronicle:
Ingredients:
 
Main

3 pounds chicken (2 half-breasts, 2 thighs, 2 legs), skinned
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon hot red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups unflavored yogurt
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic paste (see note)
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger paste (see note)
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt

The Sauce

1 teaspoon powdered ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground red chile
Pinch garam masala
Pinch mace
Pinch nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 cups canned tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cups water, or more as needed
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons ground fenugreek
Salt to taste 

Instructions:
 
1. Make 3 parallel cuts on top of each piece of chicken. Place the chicken in a resealable heavy-duty plastic bag.
2. Combine the lemon juice, red pepper flakes and salt; pour over the chicken. Seal the bag and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Combine the yogurt and cream in a bowl; blend well.
4. Mix together the garlic paste, ginger paste, coriander, cumin, garam masala and salt. Add to the yogurt mixture, blending thoroughly.
5. When the chicken has marinated for 30 minutes, remove it from the refrigerator, open the bag and pour in the yogurt mixture. Reseal the bag and refrigerate overnight.
6. To make the sauce: Combine the ginger, ground chile, garam masala, mace, nutmeg, white pepper and brown sugar in a small bowl.
7. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, the spice/sugar blend and water. Simmer, stirring frequently, for 20 minutes.
8. Add more water if the mixture gets too dry.
9. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
10. Remove the chicken from the marinade; discard the marinade.
11. Arrange the chicken pieces in a baking pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Bake for 30 minutes.
12. Let the chicken cool until you can handle it, then remove the meat from the bones in bite-size pieces; discard bones.
13. Add the chicken meat, the cream and fenugreek to the sauce. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Taste, and add salt if desired. 

Nutrition Information:
 
PER SERVING: 325 calories, 28 g protein, 8 g carbohydrate, 20 g fat (10 g saturated), 126 mg cholesterol, 380 mg sodium, 1 g fiber. 

Yields: Serves 4. Note: Ginger paste and garlic paste are available in jars. Look for them in Asian markets, and supermarkets that have large ethnic-food sections

This is not as dark as Colin Cotterill's Dr Siri investigations, not as playful as Alexander McCall Smith, but still a humorous and cozily entertaining global gumshoe listen along those lines. You will learn something about modern India along the way; in fact, you could criticize the author for being too didactic and not as skilled (yet) as the earlier mentioned authors in weaving the learning into the tale.

The author also has something else in common with McCall Smith and Cotterill: a non-native writing about a culture, albeit one he seems to know, respect, and understand well -- but as an outsider myself, I am not the best judge of the accuracy of the portrait or of Sam Dastor's narration -- both of which I enjoyed.

Let me join other reviewers in singing the praises of the Vish Purry detective stories and the excellent narration by Sam Dostar. This is far more than a detective story, although the mystery plot is itself first class. The richness of this book lies in the colorful portraits of the people, neighborhoods, customs, characters, and mores of modern India. The writing—complemented by the superb and engaging Sam Dostar narration—lets you feel you are right in the neighborhoods described and in the presence of real people.

All in all, both an entertaining and a highly enriching book. Kudos to Tarquin Hall, who I gather is actually a native Englishman who is married to an Indian woman and has lived a number of years in India.

Mummy G. is my favorite. She was right there helping Vish Puri, no matter how many times he tells her, "investigating is not for Mummies..."

Not really. I love the series for the reoccurring characters, not the cases.

When Mummie reveals she knows why the murder was committed.

I got a little teary-eyed at the above scene. And I laughed at Chubby's attempts to follow a diet, with Rumpy after him.

I eagerly await Vish Puri, India's Most Confidential Private Investigator's next adventure. "Confidentiality is our watchword!"

I really enjoyed the previous two instalments in this series and was eagerly awaiting the release of this one.

Fortunately, I wasn't disappointed. A joy to listen to - filled with a wonderful sense of humour and original characters. I particularly loved the expansion on Puri's mother in this book as she out manoeuvres her lovably egotistic son. The same narrator as performed the first two books returns and yet again puts in a great performance; truly adding to your enjoyment and immersion into Tarquin Hall's India.

I'm not done with this yet, but Mr. Hall has done it again and listening to Sam Dastor tell another tale of Chubby, Rumpey, Mummy Ji, and the rest of the well known cast is music to my ears. You don't have to start with the first book of the series to enjoy them, but I would recommend you do to get to know the characters.

Chubby's on a diet, but we all know he's cheating. There are mustaches, cricket matches, old friends, old memories... Mummy Ji is going to get the answers before Chubby, I wonder if she will?

In this book the characters are fleshing out even more. You know them by now, but their backstories are getting filled in, but not at the expense of the story. So far the two seem to go hand in hand and I am anxious to find out why and how and who, but not too anxious as there is no fourth book yet!

I really enjoyed the previous two instalments in this series and was eagerly awaiting the release of this one.

Fortunately, I wasn't disappointed. A joy to listen to - filled with a wonderful sense of humour and original characters. I particularly loved the expansion on Puri's mother in this book as she out manoeuvres her lovably egotistic son. The same narrator as performed the first two books returns and yet again puts in a great performance; truly adding to your enjoyment and immersion into Tarquin Hall's India.

Probably the best of a highly enjoyable series. Vish Poori is a singular detective, stubborn, idiosyncratic, a tough guy and mama's boy who loves his samosas. He's also very funny and a clever detective to boot.

I am a Vish Puri fan, and I love this book especially because his "Mummy" plays a big role in solving the mystery, or should I say mysteries...Tarquin Hall is such a good writer-his books are so descriptive, you feel you are experiencing everything with his rich, well-developed characters.

Vish Puri's Mummy-ji is always a favorite character, and she reveals a lot of her past. She was a bold young woman, helping other women during the partition times of the late 1940's. I'll say no more, so as not to give anything away, but I love the fact that she has such a strong story line in The Case of the Deadly Butter Chicken.

I have many favorite scenes in this book; however, I must say that when Vish is left to read his mother's diary, this is my favorite part.

I so thoroughly enjoyed this book! While there are serious topics of murder, a look into the underworld of gambling in India, and the plight of young women, both Hindu and Muslim, in the time of the partition, not to mention Vish Puri's exploration of his feelings as an Indian going to Pakistan, Tarquin Hall provides us with some comic relief in the telling of the "moustache mystery" that Vish has been hired to solve, and the ever present weight issue that Vish's wife seeks to address.

Please don't stop bringing us Vish Puri mysteries!-That's my comment to the author and to Audible. And the reader is quite excellent, too!

Highly recommend. The story is well-written; from all that I can tell it is very authentic. It is a top-notch story that also gives an inside view of contemporary Indian life. The reader was beyond great. The characters are great - I have read the three Vish Puri books and can't wait for the next.

The denouement when All Is Revealed.

His acting brought the book to life. The accents were authentic, distinguishable, and consistent. He is one of the best readers I've ever had the pleasure to listen to and was exactly right for this book.

Yes.

Great writing, great characters, great setting, great acting.