When the only daughter of a wealthy Indian newspaper magnate drops out of her Californian college and joins an ashram, hard-working Inspector Ghote, 'one of the great creations of detective fiction' (Alexander McCall Smith), is sent to California to persuade her to return to Bombay, in this classic mystery - with a brand-new introduction by bestselling author Vaseem Khan.
Wealthy Indian newspaper magnate Ranjee Shahani has a problem. His daughter Nirmala, who he sent to California to finish her education before her upcoming arranged marriage, has dropped out of college. Not only that, but she has joined an ashram near Los Angeles and emptied her bank account. Unsure how to proceed, Mr Shahani turns to his good friend the Minister for Police for help.
Hard-working, self-effacing Inspector Ghote of the Bombay CID is dismayed to find that instead of spending his upcoming holiday with his wife, he's being sent to Los Angeles to wrest Ranjee Shahani's daughter from an ashram — and from the clutches of its famous leader, the Swami With No Name. Assisted by a boastful, patronising private detective hired by Mr Shahani, Ghote attempts to persuade Nirmala to return with him to Bombay. But before he can win her trust, events take an unexpectedly deadly turn . . .
