A Murder is Fixed by Madhav Nayak - Book Review

Publication Date: 31st July 2024

Genre: Sports Cozy Mystery (Indian – Cricket)

3.5 Stars

One Liner: A good debut

Shreya Ved, an investigator in the commissionprobing on match-fixing in the MCL (Mega Cricket League) is found dead with herhead bashed. The commission was almost done with the investigation which wouldput many top names in hot water.

With an increasing number of suspects each passinghour, Inspector Vichare and Constable Lobo need to find the killer. RussiBatliwala is a one-eyed retired umpire with years of experience on the cricketfield. Detection is his latest obsession and thankfully, he has the brain forit. Russi offers his help to the police to find the killer.

Soon, it’s a game off the field where the stakes aretoo high and the players are not limited to cricketers. Can the trio ofinvestigators solve the crime?

The story comes in the third-person omnipresent POV.

My Thoughts:

I’m a crazy fan of cozy mysteries, though most ofthe books I read and read (past and present) are set in other countries.Needless to say, I was excited to see this available.

Cricket is a huge thing in India (yet anothercolonial hangover but at least it makes money), so for a mystery set around thegame was bound it to be entertaining.

What I love is the lack of caste and religionnonsense in this one. We have a diverse cast with characters from differentbackgrounds. However, there’s no drama about their identity. The focus is onwhat they do. Such a relief!

The book starts slowly and takes a few pages toestablish the characters and the premise. Then, it picks up a steady pace untilthe end (somehow the last chapter felt a bit stretchy).

Set in Mumbai, it uses the local lingo and a liberaldose of Hindi terms/ phrases/ idioms/ etc. Some of them went over my head sinceI’m not that familiar with it (been a while since I watched CID so lost touchwith the language). No idea if the local details (places and distances) are100% accurate. The author lived in Mumbai for many years, so that’s there.

The mystery offers enough twists to keep the readerengaged. However, it does follow a known template which made it easy to guessthe culprit. Also, the last reveal is typical of the genre (thankfully withdialogues to break the monologue). You will enjoy the book more if you are newto this genre.

The conversations could have been better though. AsI said, the dialogue aims for a quirky and light tone, which is common incozies. However, on the whole, nothing stands out and makes an impact. There’san attempt in the last chapter to give some social commentary which alsodoesn’t make a mark. (Thankfully, it’s a short chapter, so I wasn’t bored)

The main characters – Russi, Vichare, and Lobo werequite entertaining. Each of them has a distinct yet stereotypical personality.Still, it works in a standalone. (Now, if this would become a series, thereneeds to be more character development)

Another plus point is that the police duo is easy tolike. It’s actually refreshing to read about an average but honest overweightpolice officer wanting to do his duty and admitting that he needs help.

To summarize, A Murder is Fixed is a worthy debutmystery blending cricket, politics, drama, murder, and a bunch of suspects whostand to gain from the murder. It’s an easy read though not a memorable one.

Thank you, Blogchatter and HarperCollins India, fora copy of the book. This review is powered by the Blogchatter Book ReviewProgram and contains my honest opinion about the book. 

You can buy the paperback of A Murder is Fixed on Amazon.