The Satapur Moonstone: Book Review
The Satapur Moonstone
(Perveen Mistry #2) by Sujata Massey
SOHO Press – May 2019
Sujata Massey’s sequel to The Widows of Malabar Hill (2018) has been one of my most anticipated releases in 2019. I absolutely adored the first book, hence my excitement for the next book. Luckily by local library had this on order and I proceeded to place a very early hold on it so I could read it as soon as it released.
This historical mystery is set in 1922 and features Massey’s female lawyer and protagonist, Perveen Mistry. The first book sets up how she becomes one of the few female lawyers in India and Perveen continues to work for her father’s law firm in this book.
The book opens with an offer from Sir David Hobson-Jones, a top adviser to the governor of India and father of Perveen’s best friend. Sir Hobson-Jones presents Perveen with a consultant opportunity with the Kolhapur Agency, a British civil service entity. Perveen is a perfect fit for the opportunity thanks to her gender. The Kolhapur Agency needs a female investigator to speak with the maharanis of the Satapur kingdom. These women observe the practice of purdah, meaning that the male agency representatives cannot speak one-on-one with the royal women. Thus, Perveen as a woman, can speak with the maharanis and attempt to settle a dispute between the women. The elder maharani wishes for her grandson and future maharaja, Javi Rao, to be educated in the kingdom in the same fashion as his father and grandfather. However the future maharaja’s mother wishes for him to be educated in England and has left cryptic messages in her letters that indicate that Javi Rao’s life might be in danger if he remains in the kingdom. Though Perveen is wary of working for the the British oppressors, especially as she mentions her admiration for Ghandiji, she ultimately agrees to take the job in the hopes that her efforts to work with royal woman may gain her some renown. The mystery unfolds from there, however, to avoid spoilers I shall stop there!
Moreover, Perveen Mistry is an endearing character. She’s spunky and stands up for what she believes in even when it is not always in her own best interest. Perveen is molded after some of India’s first female lawyers, which is a wonderful aspect of this series.
The historical detail in this book is top notch. Massey deftly shows a variety of perspectives under British rule and pays particular attention to the differences in religion. Perveen is Zoroastrian while the women she engages with in the first and second book feature Muslim and Hindu women, respectively. Thus, the differences and similarities are represented in the books since India is so diverse.
One critique I have of this book is that it did not quite have the same emotional impact as the first book. The flashbacks to Perveen’s life before she became a lawyer, in The Widows of Malabar Hill, gave it an emotional weight the made me speed through the book and grow attached to the character. Meanwhile, this sequel did not contain any flashbacks and did pack the same punch. Additionally, it seemed that the plot took awhile to get to the meat of the mystery and I found myself wondering when the story would ramp up by the end of the book a lot happened in a short span. Therefore, for me, I felt that the pacing was slight off.
Despite a few critiques, I loved this historical mystery and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a historical mystery with a strong WOC lead.
