Review | Quirky tales of a new private detective are breathless fun
Adi Tantimedh’s stories about Ravi Chandra Singh (Sendhil Ramamurthy will play him in a TV series) and his wacky colleagues are light if a little disposable
by Adi Tantimedh
Mulholland
Something slightly cheesy haunts Adi Tantimedh’s first collection of stories. It could be the cover: an airbrushed Sendhil Ramamurthy stares out, with London at twilight providing a moody backdrop. The American actor is apparently slated to play Tantimedh’s hero, Ravi Chandra Singh, in a television series. This perhaps explains Tantimedh’s energetic prose, which often feels like a script with mildly enhanced stage directions. Ravi is a private detective at the Golden Sentinels agency, whose wacky colleagues include Olivia Wong, a genius Hong Kong hacker pretending to be a financial analyst. Singh had a previous career as a religious scholar, which may explain why he sees gods “usually in the corner of my eye”. His life now is dedicated to solving quirky scandals – “My dead girlfriend is having sex with me in my sleep,” says Rupert Holcomb, a young British politician tipped to be prime minister, in the book’s title tale. It’s breathless if disposable fun.