Best of mystery

Classic detective fiction à la Holmes and Christie meets police procedurals and more in this unusual two-volume detective fiction. Edited by Tarun K Saint, the first-of-its-kind work brings together professionals and amateurs, neatly divided into two sets. Through hybrid, self–reflexive and experimental forms of writing (including translations from Bengali and Tamil), this collection invites readers to unravel mysteries with every turn of the page, masterfully showcasing distinctive instances of the genre. Besides, there are contributions from Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The first book features the stories that follow the whodunit template with modifications, occasional subversion and cultural re-inflections added. It also includes experimental/parodic detective fiction, hybrid science fiction and fantasy and existential thrillers. There are writings by Satyajit Ray, Saradindu Bandopadhyay, Gopa Majumdar, Ambai, Gita Subramanian, Anirudh Kala and Arunava Sinha, among others.

The second volume focuses on police procedurals and historical mysteries. It features major voices in detective fiction, such as Vikram Chandra, Ajay Chowdhury, Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay, Shashi Warrier, Avtar Singh, Nev March and Madhulika Liddle.

The author calls the double-volume anthology an attempt to consolidate the archive in this mode of writing, as well as to introduce readers to the new wave of contemporary writing in the genre.