A Bali Conspiracy Most Foul

Inspector Singh Investigates #2

by Shamini Flint

Inspector Singh is back, but this time on secondment to Bali. A bomb has exploded and Singh has been sent to help with anti-terrorism efforts. But there's a slight he knows squat about hunting terrorists. He's much better suited to solving murder! So when a body is discovered in the wreckage, killed by a bullet before the bomb went off, Singh should be the one to find the answers - especially with the help of a wily Australian copper by his side. But simple murders are never as simple as they seem - and this one has far-reaching global consequences ...

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Asia, Fiction, Thriller, Detective, Asian Literature

292 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

Shamini Flint lives in Singapore with her husband and two children. She began her career in law in Malaysia and also worked at an international law firm in Singapore. She travelled extensively around Asia for her work, before resigning to be a stay-at-home mum, writer, part-time lecturer and environmental activist, all in an effort to make up for her 'evil' past as a corporate lawyer!

Shamini writes children's books with cultural and environmental themes including Jungle Blues and Turtle takes a Trip as well as the 'Sasha' series of children's books. She also writes crime fiction featuring the rotund Singaporean policeman, Inspector Singh. Singh travels around Asia stumbling over corpses and sampling the food ...

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

In this second book in the 'Inspector Singh' series, the homicide detective investigates a murder in Bali. The book can be read as a standalone.

*****

Following a terrorist bombing in Bali, Inspector Singh is sent from Singapore to help catch the terrorists. Homicide detective Singh knows nothing about hunting terrorists, however, and is at a loose end. Then, it's discovered that one 'bomb victim', a British expat named Richard Crouch, was actually shot in the head before the blast and Singh is in his element - looking for a murderer.



Singh, a short plump Sikh who always wears a turban, suit, and white sneakers, has a high opinion of his own investigative skills and likes to be the boss. Thus Singh is annoyed when he's partnered with Australian Federal Policewoman Bronwyn Taylor, a big woman who has no homicide experience.



Nevertheless, Singh and Bronwyn make a good team and - after sharing innumerable dangerous rides in a rickety Balinese taxi and too many high-calorie meals in local eateries - become something like friends.





There are many suspects for the murder, including Richard Crouch's wife and the small community of expats that comprise her social circle. There's a lot going on in this community, including bad marriages, gambling debts, and illicit romance, all of which is quite entertaining.



Before long evidence emerges that Richard spent a good deal of time with Muslim immigrants in Bali, who also become suspects in the killing.



Most of the Muslim characters are members of the same family, and it's illuminating to see the interactions among a devout Muslim man, his very much younger wife, and her two brothers - even the youngest of whom feels free to criticize and chastise his sister. I was happy when she finally upped and slapped him across the face :)

The expats and Muslims are well-rounded, believable characters, most of whom have something to hide. Thus, Singh and Bronwyn are obliged to question and re-question them, organize surveillance, and step outside the law (a little bit) as they search for the truth.

Singh is an interesting man, a clever detective who often muses about his expanding belly, difficult wife, and desire to go home. Bronwyn is a likable gal, sympathetic to almost everyone, and holds her own in the investigation. There are also a variety of secondary characters including a helpful taxi driver, a hunky tan Australian surfer, a pimply hotel clerk, and an ambitious Balinese police officer.



I enjoyed the story and almost felt like I could experience the ambiance of Bali - the oppressive heat, crowded roads, crazy drivers, Hindu temples, devout citizens, countless snack booths, and friendly native people.

I'd recommend this book to mystery fans, especially readers who enjoy exotic settings.

You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5★s
A Bali Conspiracy Most Foul is the second book in the Inspector Singh Investigates series by Singapore author, Shamini Flint. As his superiors seem to be eager to have him absent from Singapore, Inspector Singh is sent to Bali in the wake of the bombings, despite having no expertise at all with terrorists. While a myriad of other law enforcement officers busy themselves with autopsy, crime scene, and victim identification, Singh finds himself a bit of a fifth wheel in the company of Australian, Bronwyn Taylor, an AFP public liaison who has made an embarrassing faux pas to the media.

But suddenly, the AFP Chief has a job for him: one of the casualties proves, on autopsy, to have been shot dead before the bombs went off and, while he is constantly underestimated by those who assumed that a fat man in shiny white shoes couldn’t possibly be a detective out of the top drawer, solving murder is Singh’s well-known competence.

Chemical engineer, Richard Crouch is a British ex-pat married to Sarah just a few years, disdainful of the Australian and British ex-pats with whom she associates, preferring the company of Indonesians. A less likely frequenter of the Sari Club in Kuta seems hard to imagine, and yet, that’s where his body was found.

So Singh and Bronwyn set out to interview the widow and her associates, discovering among them an alcoholic and a gambler, (“typical of slightly dissipated expatriates”) and to track down Richard’s Indonesian friends. Bronwyn is a little shocked at Singh’s attitude and methods, to be told, eventually: “You need to get over this reluctance to distress people in the middle of a murder investigation. Treating witnesses with kid gloves isn’t going to help find us a murderer.”

The dynamics amongst the ex-patriate group are curious, presenting possible motives, and the local cop that Singh puts on the widow uncovers a little secret. The Bali police prove their worth in finding Richard’s friends, perhaps more potential suspects? Singh is a little disturbed that, after over a week, he doesn’t yet know who the murderer is. But he will.

While being well out of his jurisdiction, Singh manages to find out a lot, some by deduction, some by bluff. Other gems he shares with Bronwyn include: “Never underestimate the shortcomings of the criminal mind”, and “(premeditated) Murder is such an extreme, absolute step that there are only a few people capable of it. And of those few, an even smaller subsection will ever find themselves in a situation where killing another person seems like the appropriate solution.”

Before matters are resolved, there is more than one secret lover revealed, as well as a religious conversion; bank accounts show some puzzling transactions; there’s a suicide, and a thrilling climax that sees some heroic actions and a courageous life lost. Singh’s inner musings always entertain: “it must have been quite challenging to be married to someone who unexpectedly took up religion - most women only had to put up with golf”.

Flint easily evokes her setting, and her depiction of the Balinese is true, but some of her Australians are painful stereotypes, and she misses in capturing the Aussie idiom a few times. This is another very enjoyable Asian cosy and #3, The Singapore School of Villainy is eagerly anticipated.

[Rusalka · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to love Inspector Singh, but why does the author make it so hard?!?

This time around, Inspector Singh has been sent off by his superiors to help with investigation in the aftermath of the Bali bombings. There isn't much foreign investigators can do in Indonesia, without knowing the cultural issues and challenges, so they send along Singh to get him out of their hair for a bit.

There were parts of this book that really resonated with me. The Bali bombings happened in 2002, when I was in first year uni, and friends were descending on Bali for a cheap holiday overseas if they couldn't afford a gap year in Europe. But it on top of what had happened in America the year before really stoked up Islamophobia in Australia to a point we had never seen before and haven't recovered from. And this was particularly horrible for Australian Sikhs, as we are uneducated in non-Anglo ways and assume that all head-coverings are the same. So the animosity towards Inspector Singh in this book from the Australians was horrible but very real.

But... that's again where we stop. The Australians and English were horrid stereotypes, which I can appreciate we are, particularly in Bali, but it annoyed me for a story I was spending time reading. I had problems with some of the Islamic aspects of the book as well. I have very little idea of what I'm talking about, but some of the things I actively have tried to learn were different in the book. It may be me, it may be a different usage of language in Singapore to Australia, I don't know. But it was a bit off-putting.

The fat shaming in these books is extreme. And I understand that Inspector Singh is a very portly gentleman and this is part of his character, and we get more nuance to him than "he's fat". So I can deal with it in his case. But every woman he encounters is discussed on her size and judged if she is found lacking. It's just exhausting.

And then we come to Inspector Singh himself. A reasonable, but grumpy man most of the time. Until he interviews anyone. And then he turns into this insufferable, angry, tyrant. No sympathy, no strategic investigation, just hard and angry and it's just annoying and unbelievable.

So much potential, but again, so many errors. I have the third as when I bought the first I got a miscovered version of the third book. But unless something drastically changes, I'm done.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a bombing at a nightclub in Bali, Inspector Singh is sent from Singapore to be part of an international team investigating the crime. Really, his superiors just want him out of their hair as Singh has no experience in terrorism. When a piece of a skull with a bullet in it is found in the ruins of the nightclub, Singh has a murder case to work on. He's tag teamed with an Australian police officer, Bronwyn Taylor, and this unlikely duo set off to solve a crime.

This is a crisply plotted mystery, but the real joy for me with this series is the immersion into other cultures. Shamini Flint integrates the sights, sounds, and smells of Bali into her plot. You can almost feel the humidity dripping off the pages. Singh is never one to miss a meal, some of his best sleuthing is done with a Bintang in hand and a plate of nasi goreng ready to be consumed. The Inspector Singh Investigates series will appeal to readers who like mysteries set in other locales.

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the first book in the "Inspector Singh Investigates" saw the troublesome Singaporean copper sent off to Kuala Lumpur to assist in a high-society murder, this book uses a much grimmer incident as the basis for his exile. He is sent to the Indonesian island of Bali to assist with the aftermath of a suicide bomb attack on a tourist site by an Islamic terrorist group (based on the real 2002 Bali terrorist attacks by the Jemaah Islamiyah). Singh has no expertise whatsoever in anti-terrorism operations, but when a coroner turns up a suspicious gunshot hole in the skull of one of the victims, Singh is tasked with finding out who the person was, whether they were murdered before the bombing, and if so, who did it.

As in the previous book, he is partnered with another copper in order to create a kind of "Odd Couple" scenario -- in this case, it's a tall, rangy Australian woman police officer who is in trouble for speaking too freely to the press. As they try to find some kind of lead beyond the skull shard, the story also flits back and forth between two other groups of characters. One is a parcel of unpleasant, bickering, dissolute expatriate British and Australians, the other a small household of Muslims who've come to Bali from the island of Sulawesi. Readers don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out that the Muslims are another terrorist cell, and that they are somehow linked to the group of expatriates. However, it's quite decent page-turning fun to see just how Singh manages to slowly connect the dots. As in the first book, much of enjoyment comes from watching the dumpy Singh be constantly underestimated, only to have him slowly turn the screws on various witnesses and suspects.

It would have been easy for the story to veer from murder mystery into a more conventional post-9/11 thriller, and the author does a great job of ratcheting up the tension without it becoming a trashy airport thriller. While the beliefs and motivations of many of the characters may be unpleasant, they are fairly depicted and no one comes across as a bogeyman monster (except maybe one of the ex-pat women). I especially liked the ending, which managed to be satisfying, shocking, realistic, and bitter all at once. That gives me high hopes for the next books in the series (The Singapore School of Villainy and A Deadly Cambodian Crime Spree).

[Tequila · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit I started reading Shamini Flint's Bali Conspiracy Most Foul after finishing Iris Johansen's "Quinn," second in a 3-book culmination of the Bonnie subplot which has remained unresolved at the heart of the Eve Duncan books. In contrast to the Johansen novels, in which every character is fabulously muscular and absolute gorgeous but with series psychological issues (the better to track serial killers, my dear), Shamini's characters are gloriously and unabashedly ordinary, human, and in some cases downright homely. Shamini is the Somerset Maugham for the 21st century, but in 3D. Her characters are overweight, overskinny, poorly dressed... I love her descriptions of all the various main characters and bit parts. Like Somerset Maugham she captures the angst and strangeness of the ex-patriot living in Southeast Asia, but with modern conveniences like cell phones, white sneakers, mo-peds and surfing. I love it! And haven't yet finished, so no spoilers here. I wonder what Shamini thinks of Julia Roberts in her Bali fore.

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspector Singh is the vehicle which this author uses to explore the cultures and environments of Asia. The perpetual outsider, a tubby Sikh police detective from Singapore, he guides us on our journey. In this second tale Singh has been sent to Bali as a token assistance from his police force in the aftermath of the terrorist bombing in 2002. He is still at a loose end, because he normally deals with personally motivated killings, not brainwashed suicide bombers. His temporary assistant is a female Aussie cop who is practical and capable. Then a separate murder is uncovered, and they get to work.

I am respectful of the fact that this author has chosen to address the Muslim terrorism still being perpetrated in 2016 as I write. Few other authors apart from thriller writers are doing this and it is an important discussion to have in context.

I like the scene where we see the painstaking work of reconstructing a vehicle used in the bombing and search for clues. I also applaud that Singh sees the beaches being shovelled clear of waste every morning, 'the South China Sea being the rubbish dump of Asia' and I wish more environmental messages would be left in such popular works.

Where I found the book a little lacking is that almost everyone appears to be having affairs, sometimes with more than one person, even if one half of the equation has to be delusional to think it is genuine. There are few other motives and connections among the cast. And a character's religious conversion would surely have been of sufficient interest to report and comment on, given the circumstances, but we do not hear it until late in the day. I'm not happy about the ending, but nobody will be, and the author chose to make a statement as is her right. I'll be reading more of these books.

[Sara Eames · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second foray into the world of Inspector Singh, and it wasn't too bad. On the whole, it was a good, cosy mystery - the characters were well-written and the plot moves at a steady pace building to a climatic finale. However, I didn't like the ending as it ends on a somewhat downward note. It was, on the whole, an enjoyable read but did have a number of stereotypes portrayed which I found a little annoying at times - especially as the stereotypical behaviour increased towards the end of the book. Still, it was a good read and I will probably read more in this series.

This was the 2nd book in my summer alphabet reading challenge.

[cloudyskye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even better than volume 1. Very gripping to the last pages, plus I feel I really learned a lot about a place in Asia I knew very little about. The characters are well drawn and believable, from our grumpy Sikh investigator and his Australian policewoman sidekick to the muslim terrorists, backgrounds, motives and all.
So glad I don't have to bear that summer heat!
And I'm hooked, I'll certainly continue with this series.

[Mikhail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good. The mystery aspect is stronger this time around, although the interpersonal shenanigans are a bit weaker. Still, plenty of fun.

[carol. · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Inspector Singh could hear the heavy groans of frogs and the harsh chirping of crickets. The sounds of Bali were so different from the din of construction sites and car engines that he was used to in Singapore. The policeman scratched his salt-and-pepper beard thoughtfully. The night-time cacophony did have a certain familiarity. He realised that the racket reminded him of his wife’s cross tones on those regular occasions when he arrived late for a family dinner or had a few beers too many at the Chinese coffee shop around the corner from his home.”

In many ways, Inspector Singh is the mirror opposite of Hercule Poirot. Though equally rotund, Singh huffs and puffs his way up the stairs, while Monsieur prefers to use the ‘little grey cells’ as he reclines. Inspector has his impeccably wound turban while Poirot has his carefully styled mustache. Singh proudly wears his white tennis shoes because they are so much more comfortable while Hercule suffers in his shining patent leather shoes. There are small differences: Poirot remains happily single while Singh chafes under the critical eye of his wife, though his stomach benefits from her cooking. Papa Poirot often invites sympathetic confidences while the Inspector aggrevates suspects into reply. Most importantly, Singh is usually at odds with the Singapore police department. Yet they both have a reputation for getting their murderer.

In the second book of the series, Singh is loaned out to the Bali police in a gesture of assisting with the aftermath of a nightclub bombing. When the Bali police discover Singh is no terrorism expert, they assign him a homicide–a single murder victim discovered among the mass carnage of the club. Doing so means learning about Bali from an assigned enthusiastic and optimistic Australian partner Bronwyn.

Flint’s view of her detective, and indeed her characters, is a touch more realistic than Christie–perhaps even detrimentally so because it becomes harder to see through the annoying frailties to the person underneath. But perhaps that is Flint’s skill, to show us that people are unhappy in so many ways and that when they open to self-realization, well, watch out. I did notice, however, that Flint seems to reach for the low-hanging ‘character flaws’ such as fatness, aging, or drinking. I prefer something a little more subtle, a little less mean, and a little more accountable as an actual trait.

Narrative jumps around from members of three expatriate couples, to Singh, to the Australian Bronwyn, to a young rural woman Nuri, whose husband brought her to Bali to start a Moslem school. Plot is enjoyable, but takes a while to accelerate to a strong finish. I think that Flint may consciously be echoing the Christie style, juxtaposing details of the local life with the interpersonal dynamics of the suspect pool. It generally works well, although I found myself somewhat regretful that it was set around a nightclub bombing, a type of incident that happens far too often in recent times. Still, Flint indirectly provided me with some education on why those sort of situation become flashpoints, and why Bali in particular seems to be a site of discontent.

The Singh series manages to be entertaining while providing gentle education into areas of southeast Asia. This one was particularly notable for how fast The Mom finished the book–a sure sign of interest (and perhaps of poor weather). Not to worry: we have the next Singh, A Singapore School of Villany, waiting in the wings.

Three and a half Bintangs, rounding up because there's always room for a little more.

[JC]

I learned a lot about Bali, and the religious tensions the largely Hindu island has with the rest of Indonesia. I appreciated the racial commentary on White ‘expatriates’ in Southeast Asia, which I’ve found true to my own experiences.

I do feel very conflicted about the portrayal of Islam in this book. It’s likely because I’ve been reading some Edward Said and discussing it with some of my friends who are lapsed Muslims.

I know Flint was hoping to explore real issues that exist in Southeast Asia today, and of course terrorism is a part of that picture. Of course sometimes that terrorism is religiously motivated. She did try to underline the class issues that intersected with religiously motivated terrorism, there was a Homeland type twist, and she did highlight how Muslims were also the victims of terrorist attacks. I also appreciated how the narrative showed how someone like Inspector Singh, a Sikh, could so frequently be the victim of Islamophobic racism. Yet Inspector Singh could have taken a few lessons from Jagmeet Singh and instead of pointing out how he's not a Muslim, could have said 'hate is wrong'.

The extremists in this book were given depth of character, engaging backgrounds, and in many ways some were portrayed as unwilling and unknowing to some extent. But I just thought if a book was to cover religiously motivated terrorism, it should try to highlight the secular and non-Islamic versions and even roots of violent terrorism, and also highlight the many Islamic communities who are working tirelessly to denounce violence. I also think more research could have been done into how Saudi-backed Wahhabism is powering a lot of the extremist and violent forms of Islam, which form a small minority of the majority Muslim country that is Indonesia. This by the way is Wahhabism which has been sanctioned (that is validated, not penalized) countless times by the American government in the name of economic convenience and geopolitical advantage in the Middle East. There are so many interesting varieties of the Islamic faith that thrive throughout Indonesia, like the various non-binary genders of the Bugis peoples who are also often Muslim. I think that would have been a really neat angle to explore.

Anyways, Jesus allegedly said that those who live by the sword, die by the sword. Yet Christians in the ‘global north’ act so surprised and bewildered when violence creeps within their own borders. It’s something that only belongs in the ‘global south’ according to their assumptions. Yet violence seems to often find its way back to its perpetrators in one form or another. I did appreciate Flint mentioning how American military intervention in the Middle East was not unrelated to the motivations of these terrorist acts. I’m not saying anyone deserves to be attacked by a terrorist. I actually think all violence is immoral, but I just believe that most often religiously motivated violence does not emerge from a historical vacuum.

Anyhow, on the whole the plot was exciting and fun to read. I had access to this book in audiobook format, and its one of those things I listen to in the morning when I’m too tired to adequately process non-fiction or literary fiction. Yet again because of its portrayal of Islam, I’m passing on rating this book.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second Inspector Singh novel from Shamini Flint takes Singh to Bali to join the anti-terrorism efforts post a major bombing that ripped through the tourist areas. What exactly Singh is doing as part of a anti-terrorism squad is no clearer to him than it is to anybody else, but the body in the wreckage, shot dead before the bomb gives Singh the sort of case that he's used to solving - a straight-forward murder.

When I read the first book (A MOST PECULIAR MALAYSIAN MURDER) I did comment "This book is definitely on the lighter side of crime fiction, I'll have to read the next couple that I have here to be able to say if that's an ongoing characteristic, but I'm guessing it's probably exactly where the books are heading." I suspect that the covers and the general persona of Inspector Singh doesn't help but lead you to draw that conclusion, but really, reading this outing, it's not exactly right. There's a light-handed touch with the characters and some lovely humour and reality about everyone in the books - but the subject matter in this case isn't light-hearted and it isn't cosy, and there are many elements in this book to make people sit up and take notice. There's quite a bit of skill here - keeping that balance between the light touch and the dark subject.

The character of Inspector Singh is beautifully complimented by his partner in the murder investigation - Bronwyn Taylor, Australian Federal Police member, a "big-boned woman (whatever that means), who unlike Singh has very little experience in investigating straight out murder scenes. Like Singh she's been sidelined by her superiors, like Singh, she can be a bit annoying. The overwhelming investigation of the terrorists behind the bomb plot gives Singh and Taylor the perfect under the radar environment in which to find out the truth behind this baffling shooting.

Harking back again to my earlier review I also commented "In future books I really hope that he hits his stride, embraces his inner grumpy old man and gets to grips with his surroundings. I'm also hoping that the next books have a little more leeway to introduce the world that Inspector Singh inhabits, as this first book did seem to have it's hands full introducing him." I'm pleased to say that Flint has definitely sharpened up the character of Singh. He's wonderfully grumpy (unless placated by a Bintang beer and a good meal), he's an expert at annoying just about everyone around him (sometimes accidentally) but always with supreme indifference. Singh and Taylor annoy each other in spades, whilst they also eventually manage to build a grudging respect for each other.

The setting in this book is also bought into much sharper focus - Bali's dual sides are drawn beautifully - tourist and local; the food, sights, sounds and rush and bustle of the place is almost visual in this book.

There's much to like about the way that this series is heading, not the least because there are now two more books that I'm really looking forward to reading!

Shamini is one of the International Guests of Honour at SheKilda Again 2011 in Melbourne in October

[Remi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shamini Flint's sequel to her Malaysian-themed murder mystery takes place in neighboring Indonesia on the amazing (nor really, you MUST go there and visit for yourself!) island of Bali. I love Bali so much and was excited to see a murder-mystery that was based here. Shamini Flint obviously knows a thing or two about life on the island of gods and it comes through in the reality portrayed in her writing.

Anybody who has every traveled to Bali would have been heartbroken hearing the news of the terrorist attacks in 2002. The people are so kind and really do look after their visitors (tourists) for the most part. This novel takes off from that point, where the island, its people, and the tourism industry are suffering greatly in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

Singh has been sent by the Singaporean police as a courtesy to help out with counterterrorism efforts. As a murder detective, he suspects that his skills will be all but useless compared to those with counterterrorism training. He partners up with Bronwyn Taylor from the Australian Federal Police, also there for counterterrorism related matters. But Singh has problems working with a partner. Unlike Inspector Mohammad in the first novel in the series, Bronwyn seems to just annoy Singh. But she is likeable with her Aussie mannerisms and all.

As things unfold, however, Singh finds out that one of the victims inside the building that was bombed did not die from the blast but was murdered beforehand. Unsure of how to help with the bombings, he sets off with Bronwyn to try and figure out who the victim was and how they were murdered. As the two snoop around, they find that a vacationing family send off the wrong vibes when asked about the murder case and also stumble across the planning for a second attack on the island.

The ending to this novel was far more dramatic and action-packed than the first novel in the series. I could easily imagine certain scenes on the big screen. Kudos to Shamini Flint for getting my visual imagination running wild!

The most harrowing part about this novel, though, is the way Shamini Flint portrays the victims and the family members of the victims. I shed a few tears while reading. I admit it. But for the Balinese, life is a cycle that also includes death and rebirth. And this is also represented in the novel.


Recommended to readers who have ever been to Bali or want to go, murder mystery fans who enjoy terrorism themes, and anyone who liked the first novel in the series. Not recommended to anyone who is still sensitive about the Bali bombings. This realistic portrait will bring back some bad memories.

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the reasons I like books that come in a series. It gives the author time to unravel a character slowly, so that you get to know them naturally, as you would when meeting a new friend. I'm enjoying getting to know Inspector Singh. I also want to thank the author for taking me very viscerally to the settings of her stories. I lived in Singapore for five years and love all of Southeast Asia. Traveling through the region I got to know the people and cultures and landscapes and I hold onto those memories with great affection. Shamini Flint did an excellent job of making me feel as if I was back in Bali. I'm very happy to say I wasn't there during or immediately after the bombings, but she captures how I think it would have been and how friends who lived there said it was. I have some quibbles with her depiction of expats as ALL being as terrible as those in her story, though it, unfortunately, is an accurate depiction of many. By the same token, she also reflects honestly on the lesser parts of her protagonist's and Singapore's character. Even though I knew that this was only book 2 in a series that I know has at least 5 or 6 more books to go, I was gripped with tension and fear during the last chapter of this book and - without giving any specific spoilers - cried out loud at the ending. This is still early in the series, but already I feel as if the author's writing skills have improved since the last novel - not that they were bad, by any means, but simply that this has more depth than the previous. As with anything, I'm sure the series will continue to improve with practice. Thank you, Shamini Flint, for several hours of immersion back in Southeast Asia.

[Anna Tan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the second instalment of Inspector Singh, our overweight, turbaned inspector has been sent to Bali to assist with the investigation of the Bali bombing, despite the fact that he has no experience or expertise in bombings or forensics or even anything remotely connected to terrorism. Then amidst the rubble and the mess of bodies, the skull of one Richard Crouch is found, with an undeniable, unexplainable bullet hole.

Saddled with Bronwyn Taylor, an Australian policewoman similarly excluded from the main bombing investigation, Inspector Singh launches into a full investigation which takes him from dysfunctional, dissolute expatriates to devout Muslims with the assistance of overly friendly Balinese.

I read the first book, A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder, quite long ago, and whilst I did enjoy it, I remembered having some reservations about it. I took a little while to get into this book as well, maybe because I was jumping into it fresh from a totally different genre and style of writing. However, as the story progressed and things got even more convoluted, I was totally drawn into the book. I struggled between having things that I needed to do and wanting to know how the story ended.

[Ummu Auni · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely would say that the second instalment in the series is way much better than the first one. The plot flow smoothly and the author was able to make the plot much more believable and intriguing. As much as love her detailed description about Bali, I skipped few parts though. The story starts off with a bombing that happened in Bali, but a body was found among the debris killed before the bombing itself.

As much as I wanted to understand the motive behind the bombing, I couldn't comprehend the write up with regards to extremists claiming to be Muslims in the name of jihad. I believe the author should hold an interview with the suspects in Bali bombing before writing this story, to get an overview on what really makes them tick. There are two sides of everything.

And most of the claimed 'jihadists' usually have strong support from family, especially the wives. Look at the the stories written in the media. Most of them don't act like Nuri.

I sincerely believe the author should reveal who killed Abdullah by the end of the story, so that readers will keep on guessing till the last page.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspector Singh is a reliable bumbling but clever detective. Exiled once again from Singapore by his superiors, Singh is in Bali after terrorists bombs have killed tourists and locals. There is one death, however, not caused by the explosion: someone has been shot first. Singh must sort out first just who the victim is, amid the confused carnage of the bombing. And then the real case begins.

There are real life parallels: life in the wake of a devastating terror attack, mass murder of innocents, the murder of international tourists--ok, I'll say it--white people in addition to the slaughter of local people going about the business of making a living, taking care of their families.

[Nene La Beet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another crime fiction audiobook. This tends to happen when my headaches are extra frequent and violent - light listening gets me through the night.

As I wrote in my review of the first one, I find it liberating to be in another part of the world, to experience a different culture in an easily accessible way. The fat and rather disillusioned Indonesian detective is this time met by a version of the Bali bombings. His assignment is to solve a "conventional" murder mystery in the midst of the havoc wreaked by a severe terrorist attack. It's a fine crime novel, but perhaps has a little too little to offer on top of that. Not sure whether I'm going to buy the third novel in the series.

[Anushka R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot since you expect it to be a really light-hearted and silly story (which sometimes it is), but it also discusses a lot of topics that are not so light (opinionated viewpoints, etc). The only thing that I did not like so much is that, at least for me, the book got a little slow in the end, since the reader already knows who the culprits are, but the book characters don't, so you're just forced to sit there and watch what the character does for three chapters. I am still going to read the next few books in hopes that the solution isn't presented like that again, but you never know.

[Izzati · Rating 3 out of 5]

As usual, Flint again delivered a solid plot and well-sculpted characters. But I found it to be a tad lacklustre, compared to the previous two that I read (the Singapore and London ones).

Maybe it was just the topic, I'm really not big on terrorism, especially those so-called done for "religious" purposes. But it might also be because of how Singh kind of, but didn't really, crack the case he was on (not the one he stumbled on) before it was revealed to the readers. Flint's version is more realistic, I guess. This touch reminds me of her Malaysian case. I guess I'm way too used to the main characters revealing the whodunnit in the most flamboyant ways.

[Abe Shocket · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a continuing effort to learn something about Bali before going there, and after the failed attempt with "Snowing in Bali", it was down to this or "Balilicious". I had rejected "Balilicious" out of hand, by the title alone, but now that I looked at the review, it would have been a better choice, no doubt! By the way "Balilicious" is written by the author who wrote "Burqalicious".

Anyway, back to this book, which was a light and easy read, despite the Bali bombing backdrop. I did learn quite a bit about the places and cultures, so not too bad!

[Livia · Rating 5 out of 5]

My second book of Inspector Singh was absolutely great, too. I don't want to spoil the story for anybody but once I started reading, I could hardly keep myself from finishing the book. Since I've been to Bali, too, it again was very nice to recognize places, habits and other things in the story. Very well done!

[Ram Kaushik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable - Ms. Flint definitely has writing flair. Interesting narrative and good insights on the region and terrorism. The constant references to Inspector Singh's obesity and fondness for food were jarring, surely there are more subtle ways to develop character? Still, an author to watch because I expect her to get a lot better! (3.8)

[Felix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice one. Even though I guessed most of the plot early on, it was fun to read and the plot itself is believable. Will be getting the next one in the series.

[Jawahar Surti · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5
The second book in the series. This one was a bit disappointing. The writing style is definitely good but somehow it failed to hold my attention consistently.

[John Hardy · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the Inspector Singh books follow a model. He's a policeman in Singapore, with a great track record for solving crimes of murder. He's a bit bolshie in manner and dress, and his superiors hate him and would like to get rid of him. This is the first difficult idea to swallow. To get him out of sight, they find reasons to send him to investigate crimes in other countries, perhaps hoping he will fail, thereby creating an excuse to sack him. This is the second difficult idea to swallow.
However, the author has created a likeable, and rather believable character which counteracts the fairly unbelievable basic premises. Singh's great strengths as an investigator are his suspicious nature, and lack of overweening compassion for suspects. He uses rough tactics in interviews if it might help to unsettle a suspect and force some admission.
In this novel, set just after the horrific bombing by terrorists, there is even a somewhat believable reason for Singh's latest assignment. It's well written, and even minor characters are defined and can be pictured in the mind of the reader.
This book is also an excellent example of the author's talent for describing the culture and ambience of the country where the action takes place - obviously Bali in this case. Normally I would rail against the length of this book, at 290 pages, but in this case I make an exception.
It's not really designed as a whodunnit, although readers may take an inspired guess.
I've read it before, although quite a few years ago, along with others in the series, which are no longer readily available in the library.
I'll give this a 4.1.

[Raquel Y G · Rating 3 out of 5]

A raíz de mi viaje a Bali, busqué y ha caído en mis manos esta novela ambientada en la isla. Una historia entretenida en la que, con la excusa de la resolución de un asesinato por el poco en forma inspector Singh, se van conociendo aspectos de la cultura balinesa, desde su ferviente hinduismo a las peleas de gallos, el caracter de su gente o los nombres de sus principales ciudades y templos. Un acierto para leer mientras visitas el lugar.

[Susanna Duffy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this, although still fond of Inspector Singh. As an Australian I failed to recognise anything familiar in the Australian characters and I couldn't recognise Bali. These failings kept annoying me.

[Tiffany E-P · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t like this one as much as the first in the series. Not sure I will continue reading. Singh is a bully. And while his methods and techniques may be realistic, they are not inspirational. Also all the expats in this book meant even less Balinese flavor.