Crime Fiction Bundle
Crime Fiction Bundle
50+ copies bought in the last 30 days
Read four mysteries together in one convenient pack: Murder in Amaravati, shortlisted for the Commonwealth Book Prize; Banquet on the Dead, a chilling family mystery involving a dead matriarch; The Crows of Agra, in which Birbal saves Akbar's life, and The Tree Bears Witness, where a mango tree is called upon to save an innocent man's life.
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Product Information
The bundle contains four novels:
- Murder in Amaravati
Welcome to the riverside village of Amaravati, where the Krishna's murmur is always heard. The well-known hostess, Padmavati, is found dead at the feet of Mother Kali in the temple one morning, and it falls to Krishna Shastri, the village priest, to find the killer.
Longlisted for the Commonwealth Book Prize.
(Check out the Murder in Amaravati Product Page for more info.)
- Banquet on the Dead
Kauveramma, the head of the family, does not like water. Nor does she know how to swim. So when her body is found in the well, it comes as a jolt to everyone in the house. Inspector Valmiki Nagarajan is on the case, but he might need the help of an old friend to crack this one.
(Check out the Banquet on the Dead Product Page for more info.)
- The Crows of Agra
The year is 1562 A.D. Barely into his sixteenth year, Akbar is all set to ascend the Mughal throne. But there are forces at work in his family that want to keep him at bay. It is only after he meets the imitable Mahesh Das from Tikawanpur that Akbar learns how to safeguard his inheritance.
(Check out the Crows of Agra Product Page for more info.)
- The Tree Bears Witness
When Azgher Abbasi sees a murder take place between the two mango trees in the emperor's garden, he is convinced that a spectral force is behind it all. Birbal himself is stumped by the facts of the case - how might a man be killed by an invisible marauder? Or is the actual explanation simpler than it looks?
(Check out the Tree Bears Witness Product Page for more info.)
Four gripping stories in this delightful bundle.
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I had read one other book of Sharath Komarraju's before, Murder in Amaravati. When I saw an ad for Crows of Agra, I had to get it. I love the Birbal and Tenali Rama Krishna stories from my childhood, and I must say the way the author weaved the 'Crows of Agra' story into this mystery is quite interesting. The pace continues beautifully throughout the novel, and I did not see the ending coming! I also liked a not-so-serious look at all the historical characters like Maham Anga, Gulbadan Begum and Bairam Khan. Definitely recommend.
If you're a mystery lover (Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes) etc, these books will be right up your alley. Crows of Agra and Tree Bears Witness are more in the classical mould. I enjoyed the historical parallels in Crows of Agra, whereas in Tree Bears Witness the author leans more heavily into the folklore. (Expect another Mughal-era character to make an appearance!) Overall, very satisfying reads.
I've been a big fan of Sharath Komarraju's work, starting with his Hastinapur novels, but I never got around to reading this. It's his first but easily his best I would say. I felt like I was drawn into a nostalgic world of the past. And the ending is top-notch. Even with all my experience reading crime novels, I couldn't see this coming. Give it a try!
Four murder mysteries in a bundle is a wonderful gift for someone like me, who is an avid crime fiction reader. I liked three of these puzzles more than the fourth. Banquet on the Dead did not appeal to me... I could guess the solution from a few pages away, and once that happened, I could spot all the red herrings too. Your mileage may vary. The other three books are great. Especially Tree Bears Witness - ingenious plotting!
Excellent reads! I'm a long-time crime fiction reader, and I am impressed by the variety on offer in these four books. Even the two Birbal books are dissimilar enough from each other to keep the reader's interest. One of the big challenges of writing in the crime fiction genre is that after a while, your stories begin to sound like one another. Sharath Komarraju avoids that pitfall here. Murder in Amaravati is a slow-burn, Banquet on the Dead is urban and fast-paced, Crows of Agra is a historical, and Tree Bears Witness is an impossible murder. Something for everyone.