An impressive mystery with layers across family and business intrigue, magic, curses and even romance. Very well written and with an interesting Mumbai setting for London based detective Kamil Rahman, Pacey with lots of action - the bodies add up! My first Chowdhury read, but not the last.

"Tomorrow was Sunday. Darius's birthday. In twenty-four hours, she would know if the curse was real."

Book five of the Anglo-Indian Kamil Rahman detective series see him, fellow investigator and love interest, Anjoli Chatterjee travel to Mumbai. There they investigate the murder of a friend Darius's colleague and his chilling family curse.

I love this series, partly for the characters and partly for the culture (including the mouth-watering cuisine) and settings (I always learn so much, this time about Parsi culture) and also for the mysteries. Start with book one, The Waiter and you won't regret it!

Thank you to the author, Random House UK, Vintage | Harvill Secker and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is the fifth in a series, and after reading the fourth I was eager to read this one. Kamil, a young policeman who is unhappy with the way his career is progressing, is thinking about branching out in a detective agency with Anjoli, his friend (and romantic interest). His superiors on the force convince him to go to India to shadow the Indian police investigating the murder of a British engineer, and organize repatratrion of the body. Kamil agrees to go as long as Anjoli is allowed to accompany him. The two of them make a great team, complementing each other's strengths. The mystery itself is dark, with dangerous and violent elements, and rot at its core, which they discover as they persevere to find answers. The setting of Mumbai is great, and the story has lots of twists and turns - the characters are well-drawn and the descriptions vivid. The supernatural element was not my cup of tea, but is certainly part of the culture. I once again learned much about India's culture and ethnic/religious groups.

After a bruising encounter with a terrorist group, Detective Kamil Rahnam has decided to hand in his resignation to the Met and set up his own detective agency with his friend Anjoli. But when his boss asks him to go to India to investigate the murder of a British engineer who was found with eighteen arrows stuck in his body, Kamil agrees to take the case, as long as Anjoli can accompany him.

When Kamil is sent to Mumbi to recover the body of a British man, his friend Anjoli goes with him. Kamil meets up with his old fried Darius and gets drawn into the investigation. I liked Kamil and Anjoli, not only are they in a will they/won't they relationship, they work well together. This is a well-written, twisted read with well-developed characters. This book could be read as a standalone.

Published 13th March 2025

I would like to thank #NetGalley #RandomHouseUk #Vintage and the author #AjayChowdhury for my ARC of #TheShadow in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this one. Book #5 in the Kamil Rahman series but can be read as standalone.
An action packed, gripping, suspenseful read full of intrigue and well drawn characters. I like Kamil and Anjoli as they work well as a partnership, maybe a possibility of romance between them too.
It’s very well written, with vivid descriptions of the city of Mumbai, adding depth to the story. The twists keep you engaged and turning the pages.
Overall, an enjoyable and entertaining read. Definitely recommend if you enjoy reading this genre.
With thanks to #NetGallery #RandomHouseUk for an arc of #TheShadow in exchange for a honest review.
Book publishes 13 March 2025.

I blooming love this series, this book being the fifth staring Kamil Rahman who has had a bit of a colourful life since relocating to the UK. Which you can read all about in books one through four as per usual series rules!
We start this chapter of his life with him trying to put his notice in to the Police as he and Anjoli are going to set up their own detective agency. This idea is scuppered when he is instead called into his boss's office to be told that he has been requested to travel to India to oversee the investigation of the death of an English engineer, and to accompany his body upon repatriation. The request has come from his old friend Darius Mehta. But when he gets there, accompanied by Anjoli, he finds out that there is a lot more going on than just the death of Peter Bell. Darius also has his own issues, namely that of a curse stemming back from the 1947 riots following Independence Day, whereupon the Mehta family descendants will all die on their 47th birthday. His father and grandfather both fulfilling said curse, and his 47th coming in the next few days.
It's all a bit convoluted and interconnected and, on occasion, quite brutal. It's also rather funny which helps the book from getting too dark. Anjoli's tee-shirts being one source of this! But anything that confuses along the way is well explained by the time you get to the end. Giving the occasional light-bulb moment along the way. With twists and turns aplenty, and with no additional waffle or padding, it also gets on with itself very well indeed.
It was lovely to be able to leave Brick Lane, and travel over to India to get to know the country a bit through the book. It's a place I would love to go to, and watch cricket there, and I do find its traditions and history fascinating, especially the culture, beliefs, and indeed as described so well in this book, the cuisine!
But it was the story that I loved the most. And the way that Kamil and Anjoli went about investigating that held my attention so well. Confusing me for the most part, I was running around in circles along with Kamil for quite a lot of the time, trying to work out what was going on. And when it was all revealed I sat back in awe as I never saw that coming.
All in all, a cracking addition to another of my favourite series. Roll on next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

What I loved about this story - book 5 in the series - is that it is set in Mumbai and the author vividly describes the city to those who have never been there, from its abject poverty to the entitled 'old monied' Indians. The historian in me liked to read about the former times of the city and how it ended up with such a diverse culture. Add to that the murders of a few people, an ancient curse and the ongoing saga of Kamil and Anjoli, and you have a great page turning book. For me personally, the best one in the series so far...

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC to review.

Another cracking read from Ajay Chowdhury, this one set in Mumbai but with our trusty detective and his sidekick/love interest, Anjoli. Apart from the interesting storyline we also get a potted history of life since Partition for rich and poor and for Parsis, Hindus, Muslims and Christians. I was particularly invested in this book as I’m currently in Goa, having been in Mumbai earlier and a plan to return there for a few days before our homeward flight. I’m impressed that each book, although having communal characters could be read as a stand-alone. I’m already looking forward to reading the next one!

Having read all the books in this series so far, this one did not disappoint. It also offered up a change of scenery moving to the slums of Mumbai and away from the streets of London. Our favourite characters are back and their relationship, both professional and personal is as complicated as ever. Called in to solve a murder and a curse there are twists and turns and murders and slayings with awesome ferocity. Thank you to Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

The Shadow is the fifth book in Ajay Chowdhury’s Kamil Rahman crime fiction series. And like every other book in this series, it takes its cues from a slightly different part of the crime genre toolkit. The series started with The Waiter in which Kamil Rahman comes disgraced to London and solves a crime as an amateur detective. By Book 3, The Detective, Rahman was back on the police force and engaged in more of a down the line procedural. Book 4, The Spy, involved Rahman with MI5 and international intrigue. The Shadow pivots again, sending Rahman back to India where he is asked to shadow a police investigation and help an old friend who is concerned about a family curse.
Of course, no Kamil Rahman book would be complete without his unrequited best friend Anjoli. At the end of The Spy the two had decided to open a detective agency together (a seemingly clear path for the following book) but when the book opens Rahman is having second thoughts. But when Rahman is asked by his boss to go to Mumbai to ensure the repatriation of an English engineer killed in mysterious circumstances, he asks Anjoli to accompany him. When they arrive they find that his old friend Darius, who owns the firm that the engineer worked for, and his wife Zara are concerned about a family curse in which his father and grandfather both died on their 47th birthdays, and his birthday is coming up.
The Shadow mixes police procedural elements with amateur sleuthing as Rahman tries to solve the crime (and a number of other murders that start to dog the investigation) from the outside. But where this entry shines is in its engagement with the history, populations and feel of being in Mumbai. From its opening during the Partition riots, through to its visits to the highs and lows, temples, parks and restaurants, Chowdhury gives a great feel for the city. He also manages to run two very different mysteries – the present day deaths and the historical ‘deaths by curse’ and draw them together cleverly.
The Shadow is another great entry in this series but is much darker than many of the previous volumes in this series (although The Spy had some equally serious themes). There is plenty of quite gruesome death and much of the underlying explanation for pretty much everything is tragic. But in the middle of it all are the engaging pair of Kamil and Anjoli with their will-they-won’t they relationship, as the light and the positivity that keeps this series afloat.

Another great Ajay Chowdhury book, I always enjoy his writing and clever plots. This was particularly interesting being set in Mumbai and highlighting the different religious beliefs and practices of its many citizens.
I do think Kumar and Anjoli need to make some decisions now though as their on off relationship has dragged on too long and I have a sneaky hope the next book is set back in London as I missed the Tandoori nights!
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.

This is the fifth book in the series, and although it was a great read I preferred the previous ones more. It was a very complex plot (for me!) and I did get a bit lost a few times with who is who and what was happening etc. It was an intriguing read, and I enjoyed the fact that the story was set in India. The will they/won’t they relationship between Kamil and Anjoli is wearing a bit thin. Just when I thought they’d got it together we were back at square one! Maybe in the next book? This worked OK as a standalone, but might be easier to follow if readers have read at least one of the previous books. As always, the writing was excellent. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review.

Hugely enjoyable book. Working for the Met in London, Kamal is charged with the repatriation of the body of a murdered British businessman. On the brink of designing from the force to pursue a career as a Private Investigator in partnership with his girlfriend Anjoli, his resignation is put on hold for the purpose of the mission and sets off to Mumbai, taking Anjoli with him for both her help and in the hope that their relationship can move forward.. His old friend Darius has asked him to stay with him while in Mumbai; he is hugely successful and the dead man Peter Bell had been working on a contract for him at the time of his murder and he is keen to ensure that the grisly death is not connected to his company. All is not as it seems: the murder was executed in a ritualistic manner - and soon another murder is discovered. Darius is living in fear of a family curse, and fears for his own life. And the project his company is working on has made him enemies, more than he can imagine. The repatriation of a corpse turns into nothing short of a nightmare.

You can take the policeman out of India but you can’t take India out of the policeman, so DC Kamil Rahman of the Met jumps at the chance of going to Mumbai to shadow the investigation into the murder of a British Engineer. He has several motives for taking the job, mainly because the engineer was working for Mehta and Son whose CEO, Darius Mehta, is an old friend. He also wants his girlfriend, Anjoli, to visit the country of his birth for romantic reasons, and to clarify in his own mind that retiring from the Met and setting up as a Private Detective with Anjoli as his partner is a sensible move. The two of them have had conspicuous success in this role so there evidence that they could make a go of it, and he feels that his progress in the Met is being stifled. Arriving in Mumbai, they become Darius’s house guests (house equals luxurious mansion, servants, and a driver). It soon becomes clear that the murder might be linked to the company’s current project, but the investigation is not straightforward, not least because there is a curse on Darius which says he will die in flames on his upcoming forty-seventh birthday; just as his father and grandfather had. No pressure then!
This is the fifth in this excellent series, and it is intricately plotted, in terms of the murder investigation, the love affair between Kamil and Anjoli, and the mysterious deaths attributed to the curse. There are touches of humour but overall this is darker than the previous books. The multicultural city of Mumbai plays a large part in the story, not just as a backdrop but also as a source for rationalising the events, which might seem irrational to a western reader but are made understandable by this masterful writer. The dénouement is sensible and believable within the multiple conventions of this society. If this is the first one you have read I suggest you find the previous ones, not because you need the background but because you’ll enjoy the stories.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Kamil and Anjoli return in a story set in Mumbai. Kamil was sent there primarily to recover to the UK the body of a British engineer and also to shadow the local police investigating his murder. A murder which appeared to be ritualistic. Quite a bizarre story which encompasses more ritual killings and a case of spontaneous combustion. However, all is not as it seems and with the help of Anjoli, Kamil uncovers some dark deeds, ones set in the past and continue to this day.
I preferred The Shadow to Ajay's last novel as he seems to have got off his soapbox. We get to see why Ajoli is such an enigmatic love for Kamil, actually an unrequited love for Kamil poor chap. I don't know how much more mileage there is in their relationship but we'll have to wait for Ajay's next novel in the series to find out.

Another good read by Ajay Chowdury and the ever likeable Kamil Rahman.

Pleasingly this time around the adventures are in India as this is where Ajay Chowdury really excels in bringing Indian culture to the fore of his books.

Anjoli is back to continue the never happening relationship but now she’s officially part of the investigation team and she helps to add a little more craft to the story..

Whilst I found the ending and the way the crimes took place a bit far fetched it’s still fun to read and I continue to be a fan though how much A I is used is a bit of a bug bear for me.

3.5

Excellent latest part in the Kamil Rahman series, which sees him in Mumbai alongside Anjoli, investigating the murder of a British national with links to a company run by Kamil’’s old friend. Feels like a bit of a dry run for how a Kamil and anjoli detective agency could work, and the dynamic is enjoyable as they both shadow the local police and run their own investigation. Strong sense of place, too-notch mystery with a proper spooky vibe (it’s not a ghost story, but it’s ghost story adjacent), and the relationship with Kamil and Anjoli remains entertainingly ambiguous.
Great continuation, looking forward to the next one already.

Another case for Detective Kamil Rahman in partnership with his friend Anjoli. This time the action takes place in India and the vivid descriptions of Mumbai add depth to the story. The complex plot is full of twists and turns that kept me glued to the page. Although the book can be read as a standalone I would recommended reading the previous books first. Hugely enjoyable - the best book of the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Best one yet! Kamil Rahman is about to resign from the Met to set up a Detective Agency in partnership with Anjoli. On offering his resignation, he is instead offered a case in Mumbai - personally requested by Darius Mehta an old friend and now CEO of a huge building company there. An expert British engineer has been murdered while advising on the building of a spectacular road over the sea along the Mumbai coast; murdered in a bloodthirtsy, ritualistic way. Kamil persuades Anjoli to accompany him to India on this 'last' case. Their relationship still in ambiguous mode..., we remain 'hoping'.
Lovely to read another Kamil case, especially back in India. It begins with a flashback to 1947 and violence between Hindus and Moslems where Darius' Grandfather Xerxes (young CEO of company) refuses to open his gate to save numerous employees and local people and their families - his wife having just given birth to a son. A curse is cast after the resulting bloodshed and death. We then shift to present day, and the current case. Murders begin to stack up… I can't stress how good this series is - and this is the best instalment so far. An intricate investigation, set against mysticism and the supernatural. Brought back memories of an author I read in the 80’s – T.N Murari, I think. (I‘m looking up recent reissues as I write!)
It’s spooky, evocative and un-nerving, frightening, violent and absolutely wonderful. It also makes you laugh in places... – and I still want it televised! Highly recommended.

Another brilliant book in the Kamil series . Kamil and Anjoli are sent to Mumbai to investigate the death of a British engineer and organise the body's repatriation. Kamil's friend Darius also requested his presence as he believes he is under a curse to die on his 47th birthday. Whether so many people needed to die towards the middle of the book is unclear but didn't detract from the fast pace. As always, lifting it above the standard police novel, Chowdhury mixes in political, social and religious issues plus plenty of talk of food.
Having been to Mumbai and Elephant Island last year I can appreciate how good Chowdhury's descriptions are.
This is not really a stand-alone and should be read as part of the series. Some characters reappear in this book and others are referred to. Also it would be a shame to miss out on so many good books.
I hope I don't have to wait too long for the next installment.