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Mumbai murders

Last Updated 26 October 2013, 14:37 IST

Compass Box KIller
Piyush Jha
Rupa
2013, pp 234
195

Piyush Jha’s Compass Box Killer, after the success of his earlier book Mumbaistan, has Inspector Virkar from the Crime Branch following a trail of perplexing clues that lead to a series of grisly murders.

Subsequent to an intrepid good deed for the day involving a kidnapped girl and her reunion with her father, Virkar is informed of senior inspector Akurle’s death. A murder, as Virkar discovers, is very gruesome. But what really makes the crime mystifying is the discovery of a compass box. And a note in blood, with what looks to be a clue to the next murder, and a cryptic message from the killer himself. Then begins a mad scramble to locate him, and save for the account of a witness about a mysterious young man, this killer hides his tracks well. The frustrating notes and the frequency of his murders are enough to hold interest.

Virkar himself is well drawn out. His entry is dramatic, the quintessential tough hero. Or so it seems, the first time you’re introduced to him. He has his faults, and his shades of arrogance, and his moments misjudging other characters in the book. There is a certain type of beer he prefers, and there are activities that give him peace of mind. Raashi Hunerwal, the journalist from the local ‘Crime News Channel’ is ambitious and brazen, sometimes even annoying. She’s also host of ‘Crime Update’, and her motives are grey, despite an apparent role as attractive — female — sidekick to the seemingly debonair hero. Her interactions with Virkar at first are fraught with tension.

Character snippets that emerge from the mysterious criminal’s point of view make him seem confused, angry, and real. As someone embarking on a crime spree, he is remarkably intelligent, carrying out his murders with astute care and a plethora of versatile talents. Characterisation in Compass Box Killer is certainly effective.

Clues and trails build up pretty well in Compass Box Killer. For one, this killer appears enigmatic, potentially dangerous, and unpredictable. For another, Virkar’s moments of revelation, when he connects the dots, are believable. The pacing of the novel is pretty balanced, making those ‘a-ha’ instances convincing. Of course, the plot is a bit of a stretch, at least it seems such at times, but that doesn’t detract from the narrative, precisely because of its even pacing. Also, multiple points of view, beginning with the unnamed characters in the opening pages of the book, do well to hold the plot together.

The narrative is, for the most part, more or less smooth with a tendency towards verbosity. Virkar’s exclamations and sotto voce interjections are sometimes humorous. Character interaction is realistic in Compass Box Killer, and rarely stilted. Sometimes they get along, sometimes they don’t, and Virkar has his troubles. Descriptions are visual, as the author makes use of a few words to describe a scene. For example, there’s a simple yet vivid account of Virkar’s moonlight roving aboard the Koli Queen on page 36. Mumbai, with its bars and clogged roads, and its philanthropists, foreigners and thugs, doctors and electricians, comes alive.

Twists in the tale lead Virkar from something Very Obvious to something Totally Unconnected. Until he realises that there’s a pattern behind even the most random and unconnected occurrence, and what that dying man muttered during his final minutes may not be what he thought he heard.

Compass Box Thriller, also part of the Mumbaistan series, has characters with flaws, and an antagonist with ulterior motives and ingenious ideas, that may or may not reveal an obsessive nature. A good read, indeed.

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(Published 26 October 2013, 14:37 IST)

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