Happy New Year, my friends! I wrote a bit about how my year started on substack (on my phone, basically) which explains why I was absent. But now that I have some time, I thought I would finally post this book I read in December 2025.

I chanced upon this book and thought it sounded interesting so I borrowed it!

Set in 1914, Fiji, Sergeant Akal Singh is chasing after the hopeless case of the Night Prowler after being sent from Hong Kong to Fiji in disgrace. But when a priest starts making noise about a missing Indian woman, he’s tasked with investigating and putting to rest any signs of discontent, because to many (but not all) of the colonial class, keeping the Indian indenture system going is most important.

As you can tell, this book deals with a difficult topic. Akal himself tries not to think about this – while he experiences racism in the force, he himself tends to think of the indentured Indians as different. At least, until he has to investigate this case. I think the way Rao made Akal reckon with himself and with his sense of self-pity was well written and the emotional heft behind the book.

Another thing I appreciated was learning about the complexities of the Indian indenture system. I never felt like I was being fed too much information, but I also finished the book feeling like I learnt more about it. Plus, the book shows the range of views that people have – from the Fijians who don’t think it’s their problem to the plantation owners who have a vested interest in keeping the system going, to the British priests and doctors denouncing the system and trying to make a difference, all this brought depth to the topic and made Akal’s evolving views of the system as he got to know more views on it and the people in it more realistic as well.

The weakest part of the book was, unfortunately, the mystery. I think the premise was really interesting but I also managed to guess several key plot points a few chapters before the reveal. That made the ending slightly less exciting for me.

Overall, though, I recommend A Disappearance in Fiji if you’re looking for a meticulously researched historical mystery with an unusual setting. Although I wished the mystery part was longer, I found the characters and the setting to be compelling and that made me want to read the second book in this series.