The Widows of Malabar Hill

De: Sujata Massey

Narrado por: Soneela Nankani

Introducing an extraordinary female lawyer-sleuth in a new historical series set in 1920s Bombay!

Bombay, 1921: Perveen Mistry, the daughter of a respected Zoroastrian family, has just joined her father's law firm, becoming one of the first female lawyers in India. Armed with a law degree from Oxford, Perveen also has a tragic personal history that makes her especially devoted to championing and protecting women's legal rights.

Mistry Law has been appointed to execute the will of Mr. Omar Farid, a wealthy Muslim mill owner who has left three widows behind. But as Perveen is going through the paperwork, she notices something strange: all three of the wives have signed over their full inheritance to a charity. What will they live on if they forfeit what their husband left them? Perveen is suspicious, especially since one of the widows has signed her form with an X - meaning she probably couldn't even read the document. The Farid widows live in full purdah - in strict seclusion, never leaving the women's quarters or speaking to any men. Are they being taken advantage of by an unscrupulous guardian?

Perveen tries to investigate, and realizes her instincts about the will were correct when tensions escalate to murder. Now it is her responsibility to figure out what really happened on Malabar Hill, and to ensure that no innocent women or children are in further danger.

Inspired in part by a real woman who made history by becoming India's first female lawyer, The Widows of Malabar Hill is a richly wrought story of multicultural 1920s Bombay as well as the debut of a sharp and promising new sleuth, Perveen Mistry.

©2018 Sujata Massey (P)2018 Recorded Books

I wish this had a different reader

Would you be willing to try another one of Soneela Nankani’s performances?

No. I think this is probably a beautiful novel, but it's been read like a children's story, full of unnecessary and inexplicable rises at the end of sentences and breathy explosions. I also don't understand why the narrative (non-dialog) portion is in an American accent. This is India in the 1920s. America doesn't enter into it. The British accents, while more appropriate, don't sound genuine. I wish this had been performed in a grownup voice. The main character sounds a bit ridiculous, like a kid, and it really distracts from the story. I'm several chapters in, and I just don't think I'll finish. I'll read it myself, and count this as an unfortunate purchase.

Irritating narrator; could not finish.

I downloaded and began this novel with great anticipation, having loved a superbly rendered (non-Audible) audiobook version of "The Sleeping Dictionary" by the same author. However, I was deeply disappointed. The reader sounds like a teenager who ends every sentence with an exclamation point-- undermining the integrity of the writing and plot, and so distracting that I could not get past the first couple of chapters. A disservice to the author's work and hopeful listeners.

More Perveen Please!

I appreciate good writing and good storytelling, and this book has both. I thought the author weaved together the stories of Perveen and the widows very nicely. Most people really liked Perveen as a character, and I completely agree. She stands out even more because of the time and place--India in the early 1900's.

The author also gave us a peek into what life would have been like in that time period. I'll be eager for another book about Perveen, definitely a heroine I want to root for.

Widows of Malabar Hill

I found the book to be a slow start. Once I got further in the book I did enjoy it.

Nancy Drew Goes to Bombay

After a few chapters, I realized what was so familiar and engaging about this pretty lightweight book: it reminded me of all the Nancy Drew books I so loved as a little girl. In which the plucky daughter of big time criminal defense attorney gets into scrapes with shadowy Men while trying to help the innocent clients. Right down to the mannish sidekick (I think the author visualized Alice as being played by Miranda Richardson). I always love books set in India, and the background parts about Cyrus and Parsee marriage customs/laws were fascinating and made up for the anodyne plot.
An enjoyable light read.