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Inspector Ghote #6
Inspector Ghote zerbricht ein Ei.
Unusual book
Paperback
First published January 1, 1970
3 people are currently reading
143 people want to read
About the author
H.R.F. Keating
157 books54 followersHenry Reymond Fitzwalter Keating was an English writer of crime fiction most notable for his series of novels featuring Inspector Ghote of the Bombay CID.
H. R. F. KEATING was well versed in the worlds of crime, fiction and nonfiction. He was the crime books reviewer for The Times for fifteen years, as well as serving as the chairman of the Crime Writers Association and the Society of Authors. He won the CWA Gold Dagger Award twice, and in 1996 was awarded the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for outstanding service to crime fiction.
Series:
. Inspector Ghote
. Harriet Martens
Series contributed to:
. Malice Domestic
. Perfectly Criminal
H. R. F. KEATING was well versed in the worlds of crime, fiction and nonfiction. He was the crime books reviewer for The Times for fifteen years, as well as serving as the chairman of the Crime Writers Association and the Society of Authors. He won the CWA Gold Dagger Award twice, and in 1996 was awarded the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger for outstanding service to crime fiction.
Series:
. Inspector Ghote
. Harriet Martens
Series contributed to:
. Malice Domestic
. Perfectly Criminal
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 29, 2009
After reading so many British and American mysteries, its fun to get a whole different perspective on a detective. Inspector Ghote is a completely different character from Poirot or Spenser or Holmes, but he still perseveres and gets his man.
April 7, 2014
I am an avid reader of inspector Ghote books, but must admit this is not one of the best.
November 8, 2020
This is one of the better of a good series. Ghote is ordered to a provincial town by an Eminent Figure. The town is run by an autocrat whose first wife died fifteen years ago under mysterious circumstances (arsenic poisoning). The problem for Ghote is that everyone in town is beholden to the autocrat and he must find a way to break this hold on the towns people.
When he gets to the town he finds a magazine (Time) that announces that he is on his way to show the corruption under the Municipal Chairman (MC). The only saving grace is that there is no picture or description of Ghote. Ghote goes to the local police station where he is welcomed by the local Superintendent. He learns that the organs of the MCs first wife which were sent to Bombay for analysis never got there. The pathologist who performed the autopsy was sent to the far east of India (Nagaland) where he has disappeared and is presumed dead.
The men who were members of the forensic jury, are all in the pay of the MC and therefore won't talk to Ghote about what happened at the autopsy. There is a holy man who is calling for Ghote to be thrown out of the city, but Ghote can't find out why? The Nanny of the first wife still lives with the MC, but Ghote is not allowed to interview her. Can Ghote get anyone to talk? That's the big question.
When he gets to the town he finds a magazine (Time) that announces that he is on his way to show the corruption under the Municipal Chairman (MC). The only saving grace is that there is no picture or description of Ghote. Ghote goes to the local police station where he is welcomed by the local Superintendent. He learns that the organs of the MCs first wife which were sent to Bombay for analysis never got there. The pathologist who performed the autopsy was sent to the far east of India (Nagaland) where he has disappeared and is presumed dead.
The men who were members of the forensic jury, are all in the pay of the MC and therefore won't talk to Ghote about what happened at the autopsy. There is a holy man who is calling for Ghote to be thrown out of the city, but Ghote can't find out why? The Nanny of the first wife still lives with the MC, but Ghote is not allowed to interview her. Can Ghote get anyone to talk? That's the big question.
February 13, 2022
Inspector Ghote is sent from Bombay to investigate a cold case in a small town dominated by one man, who is suspected of having murdered his first wife fifteen years ago.
The plot was predictable but I liked the characters and the Indian setting.
The plot was predictable but I liked the characters and the Indian setting.
April 19, 2019
Pleasant book, with an ethical lead character and an exotic setting. I first heard of the author in a talk by McCall Smith and can see the series may have been his inspiration for # Ladies.
March 15, 2013
I wanted very much to like this book. First, it is a mystery, which is one of my favorite genres. Second, it is set in India, with all Indian characters, and anyone who knows me even a little knows how much I love India. In spite of all this, I couldn't finish the book. It was just too painful to go through a plot where the caste structure, social customs, and religion don't allow for the questioning of authority, or for defense of one's dignity when it's insulted by someone of a higher position/caste. It's also a really boring read, knowing that the characters will never "step out of bounds". You just want to grab all the characters and clunk their heads together while yelling, "Oh my god please become interesting!"
This was my first Inspector Ghote book, and my problems with it are probably universal to the other books with this character. If you have liked other Inspector Ghote books, you'll probably like this one.
This was my first Inspector Ghote book, and my problems with it are probably universal to the other books with this character. If you have liked other Inspector Ghote books, you'll probably like this one.
November 3, 2020
The modest and seemingly ineffectual Inspector Ghote is sent incognito from Bombay to prove that a far-away regional now all-powerful leader was guilty of the murder of his first wife 15 years ago, this enabling him to reach his current position.
With a Swami fasting to death to scare Ghote away, and all Ghote's moves somehow known to his adversary, his task seems impossible.
But Ghote's knowledge of the multiple layers of Indian society, his cunning, and his persistence, gradually gains him the evidence he needs.
As usual, there are slightly stodgy passages, but Keating is one of the more accomplished of the post-war whodunnit writers of the Golden Age style.
Splendid stuff.
With a Swami fasting to death to scare Ghote away, and all Ghote's moves somehow known to his adversary, his task seems impossible.
But Ghote's knowledge of the multiple layers of Indian society, his cunning, and his persistence, gradually gains him the evidence he needs.
As usual, there are slightly stodgy passages, but Keating is one of the more accomplished of the post-war whodunnit writers of the Golden Age style.
Splendid stuff.
December 17, 2022
Imagine Wodehouse writing a crime thriller. Tone down your expectations a notch and you have H.R.F. Keating. What blew my mind was that Keating wrote his stories that are all set in India without visiting India. Read the book with that handicap in mind. What's not going to blow your mind is the plot. But savour some of the word play and descriptions that will make you chuckle.
Inspector Ghote is lovable partly because he does not have Holmes' swag. He somehow stumbles across the finish line of the mystery, carrying a big box of eggs with him all through :)
Inspector Ghote is lovable partly because he does not have Holmes' swag. He somehow stumbles across the finish line of the mystery, carrying a big box of eggs with him all through :)
April 20, 2013
Inspector Ghote is sent to a small town to investigate a murder committed 15 years ago. And unnamed Eminent Person has told him who did it - the husband of the deceased, currently the top official in town. He controls everything. He even has a fasting swami on his side, calling for Ghote to leave. But Ghote is determined - he is a police officer, and he's not going anywhere.
March 4, 2013
A 200 page book that rambles during the first hundred pages and rumbles in the next and ends abruptly. Not buying the other books in this series. (Also, this isn't a murder mystery. There's hardly any mystery in this book apart from the question that whether I'll finish it or give up half way).
May 13, 2021
It took me a bit to get into this novel, because I'm not familiar with the place and era this is set in, but it got good after that. Inspector Ghote really grew on me over the course of this. And yes, an egg gets broken. :)
July 5, 2011
There's really nothing not to like about this book. An interesting setting, unusually likable detective, and clever mystery.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews