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Ragtime in Simla
Barbara Cleverly Book Review

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Plot Summary of Ragtime in Simla
"Scotland Yard Inspector Joe Sandilands has been lecturing in 1922 India on new methods of policing. Offered the use of the Governor General's guesthouse in Simla, the summer home of the British Raj in the foothills of the Himalayas, he is hoping for a vacation before returning to England. He offers transport to a visiting Russian opera singer in the Governor General's open car from the railway station into Simla. During the journey, the opera singer is shot dead by a sniper. He plunges into an investigation of the murder-and an earlier murder committed in the same way a year earlier. Both murders seem to be connected to Alice Conyers, local businesswoman and respected citizen and to a disastrous railway accident involving many fatalities in France several years before. Second in a series, the atmosphere of colonial India, strong characterization and plotting make this an entertaining read."
Linda Sourpuss, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of Ragtime in Simla
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 60%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%




Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain? - Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story: - 1900-1920's
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 70%
Kind of investigator - british mystery (I say!)
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - police/lawman
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - none
Ethnicity/Race - British
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Female
Age: - 20's-30's
Profession/status: - wealthy
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a substantial amount
Motive of antagonist - money/treasure
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Setting
Asia/Pacific Yes
Asian country: - India

Style
Part of a series? Yes
Person - mostly 3rd
How many deaths? - 3-4
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
Most similar books to Ragtime in Simla
The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
The Problem of the Wire Cage by John Dickson Carr
Murder on the Flying Scotsman by Carola Dunn
Death at Glamis Castle by Robin Paige
The Last Kashmiri Rose by Barbara Cleverly


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Barbara Cleverly Resident Scholar Profiles

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