From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

The Widows of Malabar Hill (Perveen Mistry, #1)

Sujata Massey

Start date: March 14, 2019

Finish date: April 7, 2019

Discussion: Buddy reads

Why we're reading this: We are trying out some different series as buddy reads in 2019.
[close] We are trying out some different series as buddy reads in 2019.

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 478 topics — 9,233 comments total

Buddy reads

* Willful Behaviour by Donna Leon (Brunetti #11) (Oct/Nov 25)
By Susan · 18 posts · 11 views

last updated 2 hours, 58 min ago

* Willful Behaviour - SPOILER Thread - (Brunetti #11) (Oct/Nov 25)
By Susan · 3 posts · 7 views

last updated Oct 23, 2025 12:57AM

showing 6 of 6 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Aug 20, 2018 Kavita rated it it was amazing

Shelves: historical-fiction, india, mystery

Perveen Mistry is a solicitor, preparing herself for the day when women would be allowed to the Bar. Working with her father, she comes across a mysterious case in which three Muslim women, widows of the same man, want to donate away their inheritance to a wakf (Islamic trust). Curious about the case and worried about the women, who lived behind the purdah and had no contact with the outside world, Perveen decides to explore the case deeply. This gets her into a lot of trouble, and embroils her Perveen Mistry is a solicitor, preparing herself for the day when women would be allowed to the Bar. Working with her father, she comes across a mysterious case in which three Muslim women, widows of the same man, want to donate away their inheritance to a wakf (Islamic trust). Curious about the case and worried about the women, who lived behind the purdah and had no contact with the outside world, Perveen decides to explore the case deeply. This gets her into a lot of trouble, and embroils her in murder.

The setting is Bombay in the 1920s. The Parsis are progressive, but not as progressive as they appear. Perveen has a background, which comes out in bits and pieces throughout the book. The book deals with women's past and their limitations and hurdles, irrespective of religion or race. While the secluded Muslim women were prey for any man (including, I would say, their husband!), Perveen herself had to face immense struggles in her life. From being harassed in college by male students to being abused by her husband's family, Perveen herself understands the gender power equations quite well.

The character of Perveen Mistry is loosely based on Cornelia Sorabji, India's first woman lawyer. She was the first Indian to study in a British university, and also holds the distinction of being the first woman to study law in Oxford University. Sorabji helped many women through her work and was an outspoken pioneer of women's rights in India and England. With such an inspiration, it is no wonder that the heroine of this book is interesting. Despite the fact that the book does not focus on an extraordinary life, it does focus on an ordinary life and the extraordinary struggles in it.

One of the things that really made an impact on me was the way female seclusion during menstruation among Parsis was depicted. I have suffered from this custom, but I did not realise that Parsis had it too. It was interesting to read about how women would be locked up in a dirty room for an entire week and not allowed to wash themselves with water. It's ridiculous! I wonder how prevalent these menstrual taboos are today. I, for one, know they are alive and kicking in my own family. It's a horrendous custom and should be outlawed, irrespective of religion.

I found this book to be very well-researched regarding the time frame, and well-researched regarding the small cultural distinctions that must have been more prevalent at the time in which it is set. Kudos to Massey for doing a brilliant job on both the historical fiction and the murder mystery angle, with a good splash of women's stories and struggles thrown in to make it all the more better. ...more

26 likes · Like · see review

Mar 13, 2019 Susan rated it liked it

This novel is set in India, in 1921, although the story also goes back a few years, to 1916. The main character is Perveen Mistry, one of the first female lawyers in India, who works for her father’s law firm. Normally, Perveen works in the office, but when there is a case with three widows, who seem all too willing to sign over their inheritance, and who live in secluded purdah, then Perveen seems to be perfectly placed to infiltrate that most female world and investigate what is going on, whil ...more

26 likes · Like · see review

Mar 10, 2019 Lady Clementina ffinch-ffarowmore rated it it was amazing

Shelves: history, india, murder, mystery, historical-fiction, sujata-massey, bombay

This is the first in a mystery series featuring Perveen Mistry, the first female lawyer in Bombay (based on the real firsts, Camelia Sorabji and Mithan Tata Lam) set in the 1920s. Perveen is 23, has read law at Oxford, and is employed in her father’s firm as no one else would employ her. She isn’t a member of the Bar since this is still not permitted at that point. Her father’s firm is appointed to execute the will of one Omar Farid, a wealthy mill-owner who was their client. On his death, he ha This is the first in a mystery series featuring Perveen Mistry, the first female lawyer in Bombay (based on the real firsts, Camelia Sorabji and Mithan Tata Lam) set in the 1920s. Perveen is 23, has read law at Oxford, and is employed in her father’s firm as no one else would employ her. She isn’t a member of the Bar since this is still not permitted at that point. Her father’s firm is appointed to execute the will of one Omar Farid, a wealthy mill-owner who was their client. On his death, he has left behind three widows, all of whom are purdahnashin, that is they live in seclusion with no contact with men from outside their family. As a woman lawyer, Perveen is the only one who can speak to them, find out what their wishes are regarding their money, and communicate to them what the law is, and how it can help them. But her efforts aren’t appreciated by all, especially the guardian of the estate, who is clearly not acting fairly, and this spells trouble for Perveen (since he thinks he can intimidate a ‘mere woman’. But when a murder takes place and she continues to investigate, Perveen finds her own life also in danger. Alongside, a second thread of the story takes place taking us into Perveen’s past including the struggles she faced as the only female student in the Government Law College in Bombay, and the decisions in her personal life that had unforeseen consequences that was affect her life in the long run.

This was such an enjoyable read for me. I thought the author captured the whole atmosphere of 1920s Bombay and life in the Parsi community as it would have been back then really well. It felt really authentic, especially some of the customs, mannerisms and language. I also really liked Perveen as a character. She is an intelligent young woman, but also very human—she takes decisions that aren’t always the right ones as all of us do, and also acts impetuously at times. But still she is a likeable character, and a strong one considering all she has borne in her past, as well as feisty in how she deals with the dangers that she faces when investigating the case at hand. She is also confident in the way she conducts herself, not allowing much to intimidate her. I also loved that her family, especially her parents are so supportive of her, are with her every step of the way and taking care even when she is unaware that they are. The mystery was interesting, and also brought forth how life would have been for women in the position that the widows were in—unable to operate in the real world, unable to be safe when their husband was no longer with them, and vulnerable to be taken advantage of by even those who were left to care for them (servants pilfering money and such). I really loved this book and am looking forward to the second in the series which comes out sometime in May.
...more

21 likes · Like · see review

Aug 16, 2021 Ellen rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Too much back story and then turned into a scooby-doo sort of caper. Disappointing!

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 22, 2019 Ann rated it really liked it

Bombay, 1921: Perveen Mistry, the daughter of a respected Zoroastrian family, has just joined her father's law firm, becoming one of the first female lawyers in India. Armed with a legal education from Oxford, Perveen also has a tragic personal history that makes her especially devoted to championing and protecting women's rights.

Mistry Law is handling the will of Mr. Omar Farid, a wealthy Muslim mill owner who has left three widows behind. But as Perveen goes through the papers, she notices som ...more

Like · see review

Mar 07, 2019 Jill rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: jill-s-fifth-year-challenge-plan

The mystery I thought was well done. However, I was not really interested in Perveen's romance or sex-life. Because of this I thought the book was at least 100 pages too long. I felt the author had thrown in as many different subjects she could think of. Besides the romance and sex of the main character , we had bullying, lesbianism, politics and probably more.
We knew from the book's blurb that Perveen became a lawyer, and as a female she would have lots of obstacles put in her way to achieve th ...more

Like · see review

Feb 15, 2020 Kelly rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I enjoyed this book so much! The plot of Widows takes place against a richly textured background, with plenty of description. Whether you know a lot or a little about India, you will learn something from it. There is also a feminist slant, with the heroine being one of the first female lawyers in India. Just an overall great read, can't wait to read more by this author. ...more

Like · see review