DEATH IN COLABA BAY: A Colonial Bombay Mystery

by Ambika Subramanian

Death in Colaba Bay is a thrilling tale of Victorian Bombay, a city where dreams are realized, and nightmares are lived.
BOMBAY 1898.
In the bustling and modern port city of Bombay—home to great wealth and great deprivation—crime is ever present.
Three young girls go missing from a prominent ‘native’ school in the city. Their families are frantic with worry.
Tara Bai, a young widow and heiress, with strong social connections, is an alumnus of the school. Intrigued and alarmed by the case, at the behest of the school founder and principal, she agrees to help the grieving parents.
Arun Rao, a young and promising police officer, is assigned to the case. His track record of solving complex crimes has led to his transfer to the Bombay Police, from Poona. Soon, one of the missing girls is found dead on the shores of Colaba.
The current crime has uncanny similarities to older cases from Central India involving the royal family of Jaiwar. A chance encounter at the home of one of the victims brings Tara and Arun together and they join hands to unmask a murderer who has already struck once and will not hesitate to kill again.

143 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 10, 2021

Reviews

[Ruchi Patel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last month I was hooked up on suspense thriller genre. So probably this is last one for this month now. The book has catchy cover and definitely title. I will briefly summarise the blurb trying to avoid spoilers. The story has been set up in Bombay around 1898. As we all know Bombay is the city of dreams and at the same time, it’s connected with many crimes due to population. It’s been always favourite city of suspense thriller writers. Tara is the key character. Tara bai is the young widow. His husband Jivan was a lawyer from Baroda. Mystery starts when three young girls go missing from a school in the city. Arun Rao is a promising police officer looking at this case. His solving crimes record made them transfer it it Bombay from Poona. After a while body of a young missing girl was found from the shores of Colaba. And this entire case has uncanny resemblance to another case. Tara and Arun joins the hand to solve this mystery. Read the book to unfold further plot. I liked the plot. It’s filled with drama and suspense. Author has written it is day wise that shows author has thoroughly thought the plot before penning down. Because a slightest mistake in this genre can go wrong. Author has done indeed good job in that. I liked all the twists. The narration style of the author is captivating. I liked how city names and other terminologies have been used from that time. Author has created a perfect scenarios to imagine from that time. I liked that part too. I liked the language and vocabulary used by the author. Overall good one. I enjoyed reading it.

[Vishnu Chevli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Dan Brown books but haven't read one in recent times. I adore Ashwin Sanghi but have listened to his latest release instead of reading, one of the main reasons is length. You need to read almost 400-600 pages long book to enjoy a mystery thriller written for mature age reader. I have tried many short thrillers but rarely I found something as interesting as "Death In Colaba Bay: A Colonial Bombay Mystery" by Ambika Subramanian. This 140+ page books can be your best companion due to following reason
1. It will take you to the historical era of the late 1890s.
2. It will give you a story based on historic Bombay culture and city
3. Story filled with twists and turns
4. Not a shallow crime sequences but a well-planned theme

The Sherlock Holmes of our story are Tara and Arun. Tara is a young widow who wanted to help young girls pursue education in modern schools. But recent kidnappings of young girls from school posed a huge threat. Whereas Arun found something similar in recent cases which reminded him of a few previous incidents/crimes. Things became more challenging and problematic when one of the kidnapped girls was found dead. And just like other murder mysteries race against time started ticking.

The story writing is smooth and fast-paced. You will get a good grip within 15 minutes of staring at the book and then it will become un-put-able. Languages usage is simple and can cater larger reading audience. You can read this book in 2-3 sittings. My concerns are:
1. Less importance on strong character building
2. Lesser exploration of cultural era

Overall 4 out 5 to this book.

[Wanderingg__soul · Rating 4 out of 5]

A captivating blend of mystery, thrill and drama.
Based during the British Colonial period the book uncovers the mystery of 3 missing girls who were abducted on their way to home from school.

Tara, a sharp and smart woman who is also an ex student of the same school tries to help the Principal of the school by meeting and talking to the parents of the missing girls. She also finds many major cues to these abductions.

Arun, is the police officer who is incharge of solving this case. He meets Tara at one of the missing girl's house from where they exchange their observations and theories about the case.

The mystery is unveiled perfectly, the main characters are very well built. The plot is excellent. At some points the story is very predictable but overall an enjoyable read!!

[Abhilash Ruhela]

Any reference to Mumbai makes me curious to pick up the book and know about my city and the story which can thrive here. This made me pick up a book named “Death in Colaba Bay” written by the debutante author, Ambika Subramanian. This book belongs to the thriller genre and is summed up in around 140 pages. Generally, when we read thrillers, it is quite long in around 300+ pages but I am glad that we are getting more Indian authors who are trying to write short thrillers rather than narrating useless sub-plots just to keep the book long. Ambika is another one in this list who knows how much to write for a story which has a basic plot around which the whole investigation shall be taking place.

The writing style is good and I didn’t feel that the author is a debutante considering the way she has managed to pick up a topic which isn’t very easy to write. Like, a thriller in the very first attempt is very difficult to scribble because if it isn’t good and your readers end up guessing the criminal in the first few pages itself, your book is a big flop. Secondly, taking the charge of writing it in as less as 140 pages only. Thirdly, basing it in Mumbai of 1800s which requires a lot of efforts as you need to know the locale and modus operandi of how things worked during that era. Hence, the way she has tried to maintain the balance considering all these factors is appreciable.

The story moves very crisply in the first half of the book and you just get excited to know how these multiple plots will land up together eventually solving the cases of abduction of 3 girls out of whom one girl is found to be dead. The character development of Tara and Arun is very nicely done such that you are able to relate with them. Tara resolving the case in order to help the police has been handled beautifully as you are able to digest that a common person is doing all of this so easily. The way royal family is involved in this plot from the central provinces keeps you excited as you wish to know what the role of Prince is in this whole abduction and murder story based in Mumbai.

Overall, this book is a light read for the people who get scared to pick up a thriller book thinking that it might be difficult for them to understand the murder mystery and several characters getting introduced here and there. Ambika has assured that once she is done introducing her characters in the initial pages, she will not add up any other character in the book for no reason. All the characters are introduced and used properly. The book doesn’t have any violent or vulgar scenes which are often added in thrillers to make them sound interesting. This tells about author’s conviction and belief in her story.

Now, talking about the drawbacks, I must say that there are many editing mistakes in the book. I don’t know how the writer and editor missed it even in such a short book. Talking about the story based in 1800s’ Mumbai, I must say that there isn’t much talked about the way Mumbai looked or lived during that era which makes you worry why the story is even based in that era except that it involves some trading which could have been easily replaced with today’s world. Also, even though the author has certain twists and turns to bring in the story, she couldn’t write them in a way that could make you jump or open your mouth in astonishment. They are written quite plainly as if someone is narrating a romantic tale to you. There could have been a lot that could have been done with this plot. It is quite an average book in terms of the offering it promises in the synopsis.

I give this book 2.75* out of 5.

Thanks.

WRITING BUDDHA


http://www.writingbuddha.com/

[Swapna Peri ( Book Reviews Cafe ) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Title: Death In Colaba
Author: Ambika Subramanian
Format: Kindle

My Thoughts:
The story has been set up in Bombay around 1898. As we all know, Bombay is the city of dreams, and at the same time, it's connected with many crimes due to population. It's always been my favourite city of suspense thriller writers. Tara is the key character. Tara bai is a young widow. Her husband, Jivan, is a lawyer from Baroda. When three young girls go missing from a school in the city, Arun Rao, the police officer, takes up the case. He is famous for solving such crimes and hence is assigned with this case. After a while body of a young missing girl was found from the shores of Colaba, this entire case resembles another case. Tara with Arun together, solve this mystery.

What to expect from the story?
This book is a crime thriller. The story is about a case of the disappearance of three young girls from a prominent school in the city, echoing an older case from central India involving the royal family of Jaiwar and then investigation. Author Ambika has written an interesting book that is 140 pages long with enough mystery and thrill.

Who can read?
The book is written in a simple language that is adorned with adequate vocabulary. Also, the content and subject are such that it would be appealing for thriller genre readers to pick it up.

How good are the characters?
The characters, Tara and Arun, is crafted coherently done. They are so relatable. The sequence where Tara and the police together try to solve the case is very realistic. The way the royal family is involved in this plot from the central provinces keeps you excited as you wish to know what the role of the Prince is in this whole abduction and murder story based in Mumbai.

How good is the narration?
This is one of the attractive parts of the story. Though not many details of how the city looked during the 1800s were described, the narration was quite engaging. The abduction and the later scenes were narrated fine.

How good are the language and grammar?
Simple yet easily acceptable language with finite yet good vocabulary is used in the story. However, there are some places where the author tried her level best to pull up the thriller string to a greater level, which ultimately was not reachable. Overall, the book can be picked up by readers who like the thriller genre.

How good is the Author'sAuthor's writing style?
This is author Ambika'sAmbika's debut book, and it is quite surprising to even think like that. The writing style, establishment of the characters and the conviction with which she portrayed different elements in the story is extremely appreciable.

How entertaining is the book?
Some books look interesting because of the cover page and some of the blurb. But, there are also books that look interesting for the places the story is set up in. For example, if Goa or Hyderabad or Mumbai or California, the city's flavour seeps into the mind. Likewise, this book is set up in Mumbai or Bombay, dated back to the 1800s. This is one of the aspects that makes the book entertaining. The other aspects that make it interesting and entertaining at the same times are the plot. As the story progresses, the thrill element alleviates, and thus the story becomes a nice racy thriller.

Final Verdict
An interesting debut thriller!

Rating: 3/5

[Rakhi · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have been to Bombay, you would have visited Colaba. The name Colaba brings the image of Gateway of India, Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, and more. But during the colonial times of Bombay, Colaba is not the least reflection of what it is now. Hence a book where the place is more or less the character must warrant extensive historical research. 'Death in Colaba Bay' by Ambika Subramanian is a captivating blend of mystery, thrill, and drama.

Death in Colaba Bay by Ambika Subramanian



Readers go all agog:
The plot embarks a slow tread through the mystery of three missing girls. Unable to manifest a connection between the girls, investigative officer Arun Rao is at the crossroads of his career. A chance encounter with Tara Bai changes the course of the investigation. Tara, with a strong bond with the staffs and teachers of the school where the girls are studying manage to extract more information instrumental to the case. Together Arun and Tara doff the secrets to lay bare the obvious reality. The author has succeeded in leaving the readers on the tender hook with one mystery sprouting after the other.

New mystery in the yesteryears:

The author has pulled off an enchanting murder mystery in which suspense becomes a character. Nonetheless, lack of details of the historical background dims the delight. Had the book been longer with the details of the colonial era, the book would have been engaging and all the more convincing. Another drawback is the suspect with a distinctive fragrance. Having executed a gruesome crime, a suspect would prefer lying low. Or I could not essentially wrap my head around it.
I recommend:

The book is ideal for mystery lovers who don't want to read humongous books with plots that stat from 'X' and ends at 'P'

[Aakanksha Mishra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Death in Colaba Bay is a suspense thriller novel. I love reading books filled with suspense and twists and turns, so when I read the blurb of the book I knew I had to read it. This book met my expectations and I had an amazing time reading it.

The story of this novel has been set up in Bombay in 1898. The author has used her imagination and created scenarios from that period and it was satisfying to read them. This shows the amount of research the author has done to write the story.
The main character of this novel is Tara, a young widow who shifted to her maternal home in Bombay when her husband died. She decides to create a scholarship program for girls so that even they will be allowed to study even though girls were not permitted to have an education at that time in India. But before she could do that the streets of Bombay get terrorized by the abduction of three young girls from rich families who used to go to school. Tara wonders if this is the work of some orthodox faction to stop girls from studying.
Inspector Arun is assigned the case of abducted girls and when the body of one of the girls is found he frantically starts his search to save the other girls. His search led him to meet Tara and they join hands to solve the mystery of missing girls. With their intellect and cleverness both of them finds clues to solve the case. But what was the real story behind the abduction of girls and who was behind it? Read yourself and find out!

I liked the plot of this book. I liked the drama, suspense, twists and turns in the story. The narration style of the author is wonderful. She has penned down a beautiful tale. It will keep you hooked till the end. Also, I think the cover is gorgeous and enough to make you include this book in your tbr.

[Himanshu · Rating 4 out of 5]

🌼The book "Death in Colaba bay" is enthralling written by the author "Ambika Subramanian".
The plot starts from school from where three minor girls go missing from a well-known ‘native’ school in the city. Their families are furious with panic.

🌼No one knows what happened to them.
Later on the behest of the principal the alumnus of the school and having a huge social network and connection Tara bai, a young widow and heiress got to agree to help the parents.
The case inquiry begins and the case was assigned to Arun Rao a young, outstanding, and promising police officer who initiated the investigation.

🌼His tracklist of puzzling out arduous crimes has led to his transfer to Bombay from Poona.
Things are still out of hand after the collaboration of Arun Rao and Tara bai. And suddenly news flashes about finding a dead body On the shores of Colaba.

🌼Who will be able to find the truth about their disappearance..?
It's very interesting to know what happened next and to know you just have to buy a copy of this book from Amazon so now go and grab a copy of this book ASAP.

🌼A charming and completely engaging read with a genuine portrayal and striking depiction.
A wonderful book of such excellent aspiration.
This book is intriguing and grasping.

🌼The writer has magnificently composed it and making it an excellent read.
The composing style is grasping and hauling the readers to finish the book with a desire.

🌼The plot is intricately woven. The book manages to fascinate you, but it is not difficult to disclose the ‘mystery.’
I don't want to give out spoilers since this is an extraordinary book and I would let people buy their copy and analyze.

[Snehal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m invariably drawn to books set in Bombay and love a good old whodunnit. So reading Ambika Subramanian’s debut book ‘Death In Colaba Bay’ was a no brainer.

The story is based in colonial India in the late 1800s. The first thing that struck me about the book was that Ambika has beautifully maintained the era throughout the book. References to Bombay Green (Elphinstone Circle), horse carriages, the docks, using charcoal to write, dhoti style sari drapes; make the reader keenly aware of the time in which the story unfolds.

It is a fairly short but powerful novel. Ambika has introduced a couple of twists in the plot which are cleverly executed. Her writing is clear and very engaging. I especially loved the characters of the police inspector Arun Rao and also of Tara who emerges as a very strong female character. The topic of women’s education in that era has been brought to the fore really well.

The story revolves around the disappearance of three girls from a girls school. Arun and Tara are deeply involved in finding out who the culprit is. I personally loved how Ambika has involved a royal family from the erstwhile Central provinces into the narrative.

Overall this is a very enjoyable read. It took me back to Colonial India, an era which I have primarily learned of through school history books. So it was refreshing to see it new light.

This is a wonderful read and I hope to read more work by Ambika in the near future.

[Srishti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bombay, the city of dreams and dreamers; Bombay, the city that never sleeps, forever awake and bustling with life. Victorian Bombay is the home to great wealth and greater deprivation, amidst this the camera focuses on Tara Bai. A young widow and heiress, with strong social standing and connections. Three young girls have gone missing, from the grounds of a well known amd prestigious school, people are distraught and the families of the young girls are beside themselves with worry. Being an alumna of the school, the news reached Tara Bai. The reputationof the school and administration staff is at stake, at the insistence of the founders and the Principal Tara Bai takes the informal investigation of the case in her hand.

Soon Arun Rao walks into the frame, a young police officer with an immaculate record of deftly handling complex criminal cases. Things are still out of control, and then flashes the news that 'a dead body has been found on the shore of Colaba Bay. The frenzied masses can hardly be brought under control, and to top it all off, this case might have it's strings linked to similar cases of the past that took place in and around Central India, involving a Royal family.

The pace was great and the narration was admirably fluid. A thriller you will probably read with your eyes glued to the pages in one sitting, yes! 10/10 would reread on a rainy day with a bowl of maggie.

[Arti · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is set in the late 1890s in Bombay and the author has done well by creating that feel, with tongas, messengers and even the attire of the characters and the way they are addressed. There are many characters and initially, I was a bit confused with the names, but as the story moved on, I was fully involved. The characters have been etched well and heir descriptions are such that they could be easily visualised. The story also talks about the construction of many buildings which are now a part of Colaba in Mumbai.
The way the inspector correlates the case to another old one, and how in those times, they would collect the data from the libraries, adds an interesting feature in the story. The story is fast paced, only one week long, and is well written. I loved the twists and the turns.
A must, must read with a warning that this book is unputdownable.

[Sudarshan Wagh (swish_ndflick) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only thing that drove me to pick this book up was the words in the title 'COLONIAL', 'BOMBAY', & 'MYSTERY' and that was all.

It was such a short read, I could finish it in one go. The whole mystery plot was so enthralling and gripping that I had to struggle to put it down once I started reading and eventually took a deep breath as I read the line 'Baroda is in my past. Bombay is my home now. I am a widow' right before I left my seat. Written in the form of a diary entry with 20 anecdotes concluding with an epilogue, 'Death in Colaba Bay' takes you to the beautifully sketched 19th century Bombay brimming with a mysterious plot of sudden missings, investigations, and unmasking of the culprit!

[Books Wale Bhaiya · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book takes you back to the colonial era Mumbai (then known as Bombay). A fast paced thriller about disappearance of three school girls and death of one of them. The disappearances are even believed to be linked to the royal family of the princely state of Jaiwar. While after a while, it becomes easy to understand the culprit, the book has enough ammunition to keep you interested till the end. I especially liked various events unfolding as the story was heading towards the end. And while you may be able to guess the key culprits her ready for a real shocker towards the end.

All in all, a good read from a debutante author.

Books wale Bhaiya!

[Vishal Krishnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engrossing read which captures 19th century Bombay beautifully which makes it a character in the book. The details are described intrinsically as the lead characters Tara and Arun work to solve the mystery. Just over 140 pages long, there are interesting twists to keep you glued throughout. The societal norms are explained well and language of 19th century has been used really well. Overall, a superb read that makes you look forward to reading more of Tara and Arun's adventures in the near future.

[Rami Shaun Fernandes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly awesome read. Takes one back to the old world Bombay, with its high society and super rich inhabitants. The twist, like the title suggests is that there is a death on our hands.
Amazing story line. Is Ambika India's answer to Agatha Christie?

[Hywel Pinto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing plot line, well developed characters and a real eye for detail. Ambika takes us back to the vintage Bombay, at the same time keeping the exciting whodunit mystery going.

Hope the lead characters, get a sequel, soon.

[Pratik Bagaria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great start for all the new readers! Definitely a goodread for those who don't have the time or patience to read through 400-500 pages.

[Aishwarya Javalgekar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun fast-paced book that takes you into the nooks and crannies of colonial Bombay. A must-read for Bombay lovers!

[Gaurav Prasade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent set-up, well developed characters and a gripping story. Crime/thriller story that keeps you engaged.