Perveen Mistry

Sujata Massey: The Star from Calcutta

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Perveen Mistry #5

One of the best written and smartest historical series being created these days are the books by Sujata Massey featuring female lawyer Perveen Mistry, who navigates the turbulent waters of India in the twenties. While never giving way to scolding polemic, the issues Perveen experiences become an organic part of the story, allowing Massey to highlight women’s issues in a way that resonates with the reader of today.

More of a straight up traditional mystery than some other instalments but no less enjoyable for it, The Star from Calcutta opens, with Perveen and her father – whose firm she works for – meeting with a movie producer named Subhas.  He’s worried that his most bankable star (and wife) is in breach of contract and asks them to see what they can do to resolve the issue, inviting Perveen to a party and screening at his home slash movie studio to see what she can uncover. read more

Sujata Massey: The Mistress of Bhatia House

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Perveen Mistry #4

The much anticipated return of Sujata Massey’s Perveen Mistry is well worth the wait.  It opens with this wonderful sentence: “Sisters will fight. It’s true whether they are raised together or meet as sisters-in-law in a joint family household.”  It sets the tone and theme for the novel, which is about the power of female connection.  And murder, of course.

Perveen the only female lawyer in 1920’s Bombay, lives with her family after a disastrous marriage.  As the book opens, she’s attending a fund-raising party for a new women’s hospital at Bhatia House. Her sister-in-law and former best friend, Gulnaz, has just given birth to the family’s first granddaughter, and she cannot attend.  In her stead, Perveen is bringing Gulnaz’s donation. read more

Sujata Massey: The Satapur Moonstone

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When you’re young and discover you love reading, nothing is better than finding the kind of book that takes you away and absorbs you for hours.  As a child, I felt this way when I discovered books like The Secret Garden, Charlotte’s Web and the entire Narnia Chronicles. Transported.

It’s not so common to find this kind of immersive reading experience when you’re an older reader, so discovering one of these reads is a treasure to be cherished.  That’s a long way of saying that Sujata Massey’s Perveen Mistry series are just such immersive, absorbing and captivating reads. read more