The second in the series of Tarquin Hall mysteries taking place in contemporary New Delhi. In this one our food-loving detective, Vish Puri, whose assistants he has nicknamed Tubelight, Handbrake, and Facepaint, go after the murderer of Dr. Jha, an Indian Guru-buster. Jha, fed up with India’s surplus of money-hoarding Gurus and Swamis makes his living unmasking fraudulent healers until he dies mysteriously while attending a meeting of an Indian laughing club. He perishes during a particularly hysterical knock-knock joke and Puri suspects foul play. Good, bad, funny, pathetic, wild, contradictory, modern, and ancient India are all lovingly displayed in a mystery that seems rather secondary to the main character: India at the crossroads from the 18th to 21st century.
