A Disappearance in Fiji

Starred review from April 3, 2023
Rao’s lively, elegantly constructed debut follows 25-year-old police sergeant Akal Singh, who was a rising star in Hong Kong until an embarrassing debacle led to his transfer to—in his words—the “godforsaken island” of Fiji in 1914. He does not hit it off with his new superior, Inspector General Thurstrom, and anticipates receiving only inconsequential assignments. The disappearance of a missing indentured worker on a sugar plantation at first raises little interest, but then newspapers start claiming the woman was kidnapped; the publicity forces Thurstrom to send Singh out to investigate. He arrives at the plantation of Henry Parkins and finds that its overseer, John Brown, is also missing. These disappearances don’t seem to concern Parkins and his wife, who suggest that Brown and the woman, Kunti, were lovers who ran away together, but after talking with other workers, Singh becomes convinced there’s something more sinister at play. As he interviews locals and learns more about Fiji’s class strata, Singh begins to wonder whether Brown and Kunti will ever return home. Rao skillfully weaves descriptions of the treatment and living conditions of Indian workers into the propulsive plot and draws a host of vibrant characters. This is an exceptionally promising debut.

April 15, 2023
In colonial Fiji, the search for a missing plantation worker exposes the deep roots of the island's racism. Young police sergeant Akal Singh, who's been in Fiji a mere six months in 1914, is finding his bearings and growing in confidence through a strong relationship with Taviti, a Fijian corporal. The biggest challenge the police face is a miscreant known as the Night Prowler, who's been terrorizing children by peeping in their windows. To his surprise, Akal is pulled off this case and instructed to investigate the disappearance of Kunti, an indentured laborer on a sugar plantation owned by Henry and Susan Parkins, an influential Australian couple. The case probably wouldn't have garnered much attention but for the interest of righteous missionary Father David Hughes, who suspects kidnapping and has written to the newspaper. The Parkinses assume that Kunti has run away, so the investigation is at a stalemate. But Akal suspects foul play, and bolstered by the involvement of the sympathetic Father Hughes and the influential Mr. Ravendra Choudry, he continues his probe. The undercurrent of the White community's racism reminds Akal of a time he was reprimanded in Hong Kong over his "indiscretion" with Emily Strahan, a young Englishwoman who deceived him in a criminal case. He is determined not to make a similar mistake in Fiji. Akal's journey from optimistic junior officer to sadder but wiser fighter for justice provides this debut with a relatable heart. A complex and engaging mystery given even greater weight by its important historical backdrop.

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Starred review from May 1, 2023

DEBUT Rao's mystery relates the little-known story of Indians who were indentured in Fiji. In 1914, young Indian police sergeant Akal Singh is assigned to British colonial Fiji as punishment for misdeeds in Hong Kong. He's assigned the case of an indentured Indian servant who disappeared from a plantation. Normally this sort of disappearance would not be scrutinized, but two events prompt the inspector-general to investigate: first, a Catholic missionary told the newspaper that Kunti, the missing woman, was kidnapped; second, the delegation for Indian Relations with Fiji is visiting, and they are interested in how the British police treat a crime against an indentured servant. Akal knows the case is either a chance to redeem himself for his actions in Hong Kong or to become a scapegoat. The British plantation owners treat Akal no better than their indentured servants. If a British doctor didn't smooth the way, Akal might not have been able to talk with the servants, who tell him how the British sexually abused the women, including Kunti. Akal's boss will not be pleased with his final report about Kunti's disappearance. VERDICT The Punjabi Sikh Akal Singh and the mystery of colonial Fiji will appeal to fans of Abir Mukherjee's mysteries set in India.--Lesa Holstine

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Starred review from May 1, 2023
This debut novel by a Fijian Indian Australian delivers both an absorbing mystery and a scathing indictment of the cruelties inflicted on indentured servants from India working on the sugar plantations in Fiji in 1914. Rao's detective, Indian Police Sergeant Akal Singh, demoted from his post in Hong Kong to Fiji six months earlier, is assigned to the case of a young woman who went missing from a sugar plantation. A crusading priest insists she was kidnapped; the British inspector general wants Singh to do only the most cursory investigation, aimed both at containing journalists interested in the story and at quieting the priest, who has launched a campaign against the misrule of the plantations. Singh's examination of the plantation from which the girl disappeared reveals abysmal conditions. Just about every dealing Singh has with the British is loaded with casual racism. It's fascinating to watch Singh's uphill struggle to learn what happened to the young woman; the way he is thwarted at every turn speaks volumes about colonial rule. An insightful, determined main character, the unearthing of the wrongs of indentured servitude, and a compelling plot make this a promising start to a new series. Fans of Harini Nagendra's The Bangalore Detectives Club (2022), also about the wrongs inflicted under British colonialism, should love this mystery.

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