The story is very gripping and wow the ending is a big surprise. I thoroughly recommend this book, another thrilling read by this talented author

Ajay Chowdhury’s Kamil Rahman series is only four books old but has managed to constantly reinvent itself. The book in the series The Waiter was a hard edged cosy crime story in which a disgraced Kolkata detective working in his family’s London restaurant helps solve a crime. By book 3, The Detective, Rahman found himself back in the police force and delivered an interesting but slightly underwhelming procedural. With The Spy, Chowdhury reinvents his premise again, having Rahman go undercover for MI5, with much better effect.
When The Spy opens, Rahman is still, doing penance in the police force for the unorthodox way he dealt with the crimes in The Detective. He is approached by his Imam, who believes that one of his parishioners has fallen in with Islamic extremists. Soon the Imam and is missing and Rahman is approached by MI5 to go undercover at a local mosque to try and find out what has happened to the Imam and uncover the plot. In order to do so he has to be drummed out of the police force. Meanwhile his on-again, off-again girlfriend Anjoli, finds herself trying to help a couple whose son has been kidnapped.
The Spy is a definitely a change of pace for Chowdhury and his characters. More thriller than whodunnit or procedural with secret identifies, kidnapping, torture and more than one ticking clock. But baked into this new formula are the same issues Rahman has been dealing with since book one – racism and Islamaphobia in both Inda and the UK, and the use of these in the service of greed and power. In The Spy Chowdhury also explores the siren song of fundamentalism, and how good ethical people can be slowly turned to do things that might not otherwise contemplate. But as always the focus is on the central characters of Kamil and Anjoli and their relationship complicated further by the presence of Kamil’s ex-fiancé Mahlina in London.
For a series that started strongly, The Spy feels like a return to form for Chowdhury. It is tense, deals with real world issues, and remains anchored around two engaging characters. And it feels by the end that Chowdhury may well pivot again should Kamil and Anjoli return for a fifth time.

I was somewhat underwhelmed by this book since a friend had raved about the first three in the series. Perhaps I just chanced on the one different one since it was much less about solving a crime in an amateur fashion rather than a political manifesto about the shocking things happening in Kashmir.

The story has a few strands - the kidnapping of the teenage son of Anjoli's friends is investigated by Anjoli while Kamil (having burned his bridges with Anjoli) is back in the Police Force and his own flat. But not for long as he is poached by MI5 to investigate a possible terrorist plot which will take him all over London and back to India.

The plot isn't complicated. However the kidnap of the teenager involves many references to Harry Potter and, after a while, it began to feel like I was reading a JK Rowling book. The whole feel of the novel is quite juvenile and it would probably appeal to a YA audience.

The characters felt quite flat too. Perhaps that is because I haven't read the first three books but Kamil really got on my nerves with his vacillating between whether he wanted to be with Maliha or Anjoli. If I were either of the women I'd tell him to sling his hook. It became a very irritating part of the narrative.

The plot itself becomes rather fantastical towards the end and I fear that if half of the things that happened to Kamil had happened to an actual person they'd have been locked up in their own best interests. It certainly wandered into that Potter/James Bond vibe at times.

So I was, on the whole, not blown away by the plot although it did make for some sickening further reading about Kashmir's current state.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Random House, Vintage for the advance review copy.

Our Muslim detective is persuaded to be seconded to MI5 to work under cover to replace s predecessor who had been exposed and murdered. His job is to infiltrate an embryo group working for an independent Kashmir for Muslims, to be achieved by some terrorist act against Indian rule. Gives a detailed insight into the politics of the region with all the different vested interests involved and the atrocities committed to its peoples. A most hairy mission with danger a risk of death from all sides and no one to fully trust while being torn between the two young women in his life.

Another winner by Ajay Chowdhury, I realise have come to quite miss Kamil and his dilemmas between books!
This feels like the most political of recent ones, although possibly it is just that subject of extremism is making more headlines at present in the UK, maybe at the cost of reporting on wider international issues in India and Kashmir for example.
The human stories manage to ground the book including the eternal love triangle and general day to day life of people living in the area. Also some fabulous descriptions of food.
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book

Kahmil Rahman is back and he’s now a fully fledged police Constable in this 4th book from Ajay Chowdury.

As with any series, it always helps to read them all, and with these being so good I would recommend doing just that.

This 4th book feels much more personal and serious than it’s predecessors as Ajay Chowdhury brings a very real and live political situation in real life firmly to the forefront this new thriller. He maybe does bring the political Angle a little too heavily.

Kamil continues to be the most indecisive character in the world as he battles many inner demos but first and foremost he always does what’s right.

So an intriguing, powerful and politically charged thriller this time around ticks many boxes and whilst the love triangle of earlier books is still there it’s been very much toned down in favour of a new character into the series.

Chowdhury is a fine crime writer and I am thoroughly invested in this superb series

Loving this series and this instalment was definitely the grittiest to date. Terrorism, spies, bombs and take aways, it’s all going on! Fast paced and clever with characters that are familiar and worth rooting for this book was a good read. Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me an advance reader copy.

As always, this another triumph from a great writer who seemlessly marries the current political/social issues with the old characters we’ve come to love through previous books. However don’t be put off - this, like all previous books, can be read as a stand alone story but then you’d be missing out on Kamil’s journey both physically and emotionally to see how he’s ended up where he is at the start of The Spy. I really enjoy the dilemmas he faces, work wise and love interest. I found myself routing for him to just come to a decision. I also found the background of how Indian politics and current treatment of Kashmiris especially interesting, which has sparked a decision to investigate more about the situation to which hitherto I knew very little. I have raved about these books to many friends and family and genuinely can’t wait for the next one.

This was an excellent thriller, with a lot going on. I enjoyed the interaction between the 3 main characters and the social backdrop within India and London mosques were detailed and very interesting.

I quite enjoyed this book, even when I realised there were prequals the where constantly referenced. The soul-searching from Kamil was quite endearing and felt real. It was good to see the Kashmir problems being introduced as a plot line. An intriguing read until the final chapter.

But two big cons – 1) the main leader Sanyal was just a parody of another Indian leader- why note just call him out?
2) the ending – it felt like a mash-up of what was happening in Kashmir, other Indian states and other Asian countries.

Last year, I was fortunate to receive an ARC for 'The Detective', the third novel in the highly enjoyable Detective Kamil Rahman Mystery series by Ajay Chowdhury. It was my first time reading one of the Kamil Rahman novels, and afterwards, I decided to catchup my reading the first two novels in the series.
If you are a newcomer, then do not hesitate to dive straight into the series because as always the author has carefully crafted the storyline to provide sufficient information re the characters background to peak the reader's interest in reading the previous novels, and not too much information to overload the reader.
As the story begins, Kamil is continuing to work
as a Detective constable in the London Metropolitan police, though he faces a daily struggle in the face of the balant racism of his boss. He also is caught trying to decide where his heart truly lies - with the funny Anjoli, or his long ago love Maliha.
The storyline here is a complex one, and as in previous novels, gives the reader pause for thought, when the thorny issues of religion, identity and politics collide.
I did struggle on occasion to keep track of the storyline and this is not down to the writing but (and I'm embarrassed to admit this) but to my lack of knowledge about the topics covered so although a work of fiction, the issues covered and the history of Kashmir is indeed true and has encouraged me to read more non-fiction about this region. And that can only be a good thing.
Of and before I forget, can Anjoli please start producing those fab t-shirts as I would certainly be a customer!
This is another intelligent and well written thriller in the series that I can't recommend highly enough and I'm looking forward to more adventures with Kamil, Anjoli and Maliha.

The fourth Detective Kamil Rahman, now working as a detective with the Met. I haven’t read the other books in the series and while this works well as a stand-alone I wish I had a bit more background in the characters.

Central to this book is the Kashmir situation. Good to read a book that also educates. Ironic that an item on the morning news was Modi and inauguration of the Hindu temple at Ayodhya.

Thanks to Netgallery for the ARC

This is the fourth book in a series about Kamil so if you haven’t read the previous ones, I suggest that you pause and find the former stories as it will make this one so much more enjoyable. It stands alone as a crime thriller but I found that it took a while for me to grasp some of the reasons for actions and relationships between characters who are mentioned in passing. That alongside the inclusion of commentary on the political situation of that time meant that at times I was out of my depth or perhaps just interest.

This is Ajay Chowdhury's second novel featuring Detective Kamil Rahman and the two loves in his life; Anjoli and Maliha. Will he make a commitment to one of them in this new novel?
I was a real fan of The Detective, Ajay's previous thriller but not so much this one. I used to enjoy reading the explanations of the various dishes at Tandoori Knights but sadly his latest novel is for the knowledgeable diner, with little explanation of the ingredients. I feel Ajay Chowdhury is trying to make political and religious statements in his writing that was not so apparent in The Detective. Notwithstanding that it was a good thriller with several threads. No mention was made of the repercussions of breaching The Official Secrets Act which was alarming, especially as we now know that staff at Bletchley Park went to their graves not discussing their secrets. I do totally get Kamil's sense of fairness and righteous indignation coming through, also he makes a great case for the laws of unintended consequences. Is a fiction novel the right vehicle for something I feel Ajay wants the world to wake up to? I don't know. Maybe he should try non-fiction?

Regarding my early ARC:
A note for the author.....woollen moccasins wouldn't normally give rise to footsteps echoing down the wooden staircase. Either there was frost or snow at the doctor's house. A wooden sheet magics itself in to a pane at the escape attempt.

Another enjoyable entry in the Kamil Rahman series - I’ve stopped questioning the likelihood of events and am just rolling with it - so he’s a spy now? Yep, happy with that, off you go spying without any training, you’ll be grand. The nature of these affairs is that events and stories running in parallel will coincide, and part of the fun is working out just how Kamil’s story and Anjoli’s story will be linked together. Further conflict in Kamil’s romantic life is also entertaining, the poor lad just can’t get a break…

Roll on the next book!

I have read the previous books in the Kamil Rahman series and have loved them all. This one is no exception, in fact it’s the best so far. It has everything – murders, tension, intrigue, romance, humour, and lots of great food. It’s a fabulous read and I can’t wait for the next one. A lot of the book centres on Kamil’s past so it would make more sense to new readers if they read the previous 3 books first. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the arc, and please let me have the next one soon!

This really couldn’t be further from the type of genre I usually read, I’m not politically inclined, I know nothing about the religious aspects of the book and I’ve never read a spy thriller!

I enjoyed the book enormously and will recommend it thoroughly however it’s not converted me into wanting to read loads more of this type of story, a great one off! Thrilling, brutal, amusing and I felt well researched (but what do I know about m15?!)

Thank you Netgalley the author and publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest review

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley.

I thought that this was an engaging thriller with plenty of action (and some quite surprising tense moments, which was first put to good use from the first chapter.) This is actually my first Ajay Chowdhury book I have ever read (although I am aware this is he fourth in the series.) I didn't have too much trouble keeping up with the plot (given that I have missed out on a lot of the back-story. It was written clearly enough for me to do so.) This does have a double narrative featuring Kamil and Anjoli which added fresh perspectives to the tale. I also liked the descriptions of the food too!

The Spy is the latest book in Ajay Chowdhury's excellent Kamil Rahman series. For those new to the series Rahman is a former Calcutta police officer forced to flee to London after refusing to ignore corruption that he unearths. Finding employment first as a waiter,then a Cook in a Brick Lane restaurant before finally joining the Met. In this book he's approached by members of the security services and asked to go undercover in a mosque where extremists are thought to be hatching a deadly plot.
This is an excellent read that combines an intelligent story-line with plenty of humour and an insight into life in Britain for Muslims today. It's quite political which might put off some but it's informative rather than preachy. I had no idea of the current situation in Kashmir and through reading this I looked further into something that as so often the West decides not to speak about but really should.
There are some great characters in this series with Rahman torn between 2 women and my favourite,Chanson....the culinary equivalent of Derek Zoolander ,probably the only time I've laughed out loud over a menu of all things.
If this is the first book you're read in this series I'd advise starting from the beginning, there is enough of the backstory given to make sense of Rahman's situation in this one but you'll be missing a real treat if you skip the first 3.
I don't know where Rahman goes from here but I can't wait to find out.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House UK, Vintage for an advance copy of The Spy, the fourth novel to feature Kamil Rahman, set mostly in London.

Kamil is working as a DC in the Met when MI5 ask him to go undercover. They have discovered the hint of a terrorist plot and want him to get the detail. He is sacked from the Met as a cover story and successfully infiltrates the cell, which sends him to Kashmir as a loyalty test. Meanwhile his friend Anjoli is looking for a missing teenager who is sending coded messages in his videos.

I enjoyed The Spy, which is a novel of two halves. The first half is relatively slow as Kamil gradually insinuates himself into an extremist cell, whereas the second half is nonstop action and tension as Kamil dices with death.

I’m not greatly interested in spies or militant extremism in my reading matter, but the chance to spend time with Kamil and Anjoli was too good to pass up. Having said that the novel has a harder edge than its predecessors, exposing the Hindu nationalism in India and the violence in Kashmir. I have no idea if it is a true depiction, but it feels as if it could be. It paints a grim picture.

As I said a novel of two halves. I didn’t feel overly engaged in the first half with the terrorists promoting a pipe dream. Still, all you need is to convince the gullible and a cell is born. Even the naive Kamil found something enticing in their argument. The second half is full of action as Kamil swings into action to save the world, or at least one part of it. The novel is well put together with a clever plot and a neat, if fanciful, ending of just desserts. It is satisfying but hardly believable.

Kamil is still dithering about the ladies in his life, should he choose his friend Anjoli or go back to his former fiancée Mahliha. After four novels he finally makes a choice, but he may be too late. I like Kamil, but he’s a strange mixture of rash and indecision. His heart’s in the right place.

The Spy is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.