Smoke And Ashes

Captain Sam Wyndham and his sidekick Surrender-Not Banerjee return in this prize-winning historical crime series set in 1920s Calcutta. India, 1921. Haunted by his memories of World War I, Captain Sam Wyndham is battling a serious addiction to opium that he must keep secret from his superiors in the Calcutta police force. When Sam is summoned to investigate a grisly murder, he is stunned at the sight of the body: he’s seen this before. Last night, in a drug addled haze, he stumbled across a corpse with the same ritualistic injuries. It seems like there’s a deranged killer on the loose. Unfortunately for Sam, the corpse was in an opium den—and revealing his presence there could cost him his career. With the aid of his quick-witted Indian Sergeant, Surrender-Not Banerjee, Sam must try to solve the two murders, all the while keeping his personal demons secret, before somebody else turns up dead.

When Amitav Ghosh began his research for the Ibis Trilogy some twenty years ago, he was startled to find how the lives of the nineteenth-century sailors and soldiers he wrote of were dictated not only by the currents of the Indian Ocean, but also by a precious commodity carried in enormous quantities on those currents: opium. Most surprising of all was the discovery that his own identity and family history were swept up in the story. Smoke and Ashes is at once a travelogue, a memoir and an excursion into history, both economic and cultural. Ghosh traces the transformative effect the opium trade had on Britain, India and China, as well as on the world at large. Engineered by the British Empire, which exported opium from India to sell in China, the trade and its revenues were essential to the Empire's survival. Upon deeper exploration, Ghosh finds opium at the origins of some of the world's biggest corporations, several of America's most powerful families and institutions, and contemporary globalism itself. In India the long-term consequences were even more profound. Moving deftly between horticultural histories, the mythologies of capitalism and the social and cultural repercussions of colonialism, Smoke and Ashes reveals the pivotal role one small plant has played in the making of the world as we know it - a world that is now teetering on the edge of catastrophe. --- 'In thinking about the opium poppy's role in history it is hard to ignore the feeling of an intelligence at work. The single most important indication of this is the poppy's ability to create cycles of repetition, which manifest themselves in similar phenomena over time. What the opium poppy does is clearly not random; it builds symmetries that rhyme with each other. It is important to recognize that these cycles will go on repeating, because the opium poppy is not going away anytime soon. In Mexico, for instance, despite intensive eradication efforts the acreage under poppy cultivation has continued to increase. Indeed, there is more opium being produced in the world today than at any time in the past. Only by recognizing the power and intelligence of the opium poppy can we even begin to make peace with it.'

"I like my whiskey like I like my women: stretching a metaphor way too far. A couple of years ago I screwed up so badly that everybody I remotely cared about wound up dead, nearly dead, or just plain betraying me. Some days, I'm sober enough to care. My list of "things I really don't need right now" starts with a condescending octogenarian werewolf having a go at me for banging a Marchioness. As for where it ends, try the disembodied spirit of my ex-girlfriend stalking me in my dreams, a vindictive wizard-vampire from the first century on a vengeance crusade, being hired by the magical twin of my disanimated best friend and, oh yes, having to find the actual Holy Grail. If I was a better person, I'd take this opportunity to put my life together. I'd find a way to fix everything I broke, save everybody I let down, and maybe pay a certain vampire back for leaving me to die. But I'm not a better person. I'm a hard-drinking half-faery train wreck on legs and if I hated myself less I might even say I liked it that way"--Provided by publisher.

Tanya Huff’s supernatural fantasy Smoke series, with a gothic twist • Mix of ghostly mystery, paranormal horror, and dark humor • Lamba Award nominated Fans of the X-Files and Twin Peaks will love acclaimed master of contemporary fantasy Tanya Huff’s twisted version of vampires, wizards, and TV terror. Tony Foster, fledgling wizard and now trainee assistant director on Darkest Night—the syndicated vampire detective show—is hoping that they only supernatural events he’ll be caught up in are those in the script. But that isn’t meant to be, for a demonic convergence is about to begin, creating weak spots through which lesser demons may enter the world. To complicate matters, Leah, the incredibly seductive stuntwoman who freelances for the show, is an immortal Demongate. Should Leah die, the Demongate will open and her sensual demon master will wreak havoc upon the unsuspecting human race. Can Tony—with the help of Leah, Henry, a tabloid reporter, a Mountie, and the cast of Darkest Night—halt a demonic invasion and stave off the end of the world?

'An exceptional historical crime novel' C.J. Sansom India, 1920. Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant Banerjee of Calcutta Police must investigate the dramatic assassination of a Maharaja's son... Sam Wyndham is visiting the kingdom of Sambalpore, home to diamond mines and the beautiful Palace of the Sun. But when the Maharaja's eldest son is assassinated, Wyndham realises that the realm is riven with conflict. Prince Adhir was unpopular with religious groups, while his brother - now in line to the throne - appears to be a feckless playboy. As Wyndham and Sergeant 'Surrender-not' Banerjee endeavour to unravel the mystery, they become entangled in a dangerous world. They must find the murderer, before the murderer finds them. *Abir Mukherjee's blockbuster contemporary thriller HUNTED is available to pre-order NOW* _____________________________________ **WINNER OF THE WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE** *SHORTLISTED FOR THE HISTORICAL AND GOLD DAGGERS* *LONGLISTED FOR THE CWA STEEL DAGGER* Praise for the Wyndham and Banerjee series: 'Even better than his first' Daily Telegraph 'An exceptional historical crime novel' C.J. Sansom 'A thought-provoking rollercoaster' Ian Rankin 'Cracking... A journey into the dark underbelly of the British Raj' Daily Express If you enjoyed A Necessary Evil, further books in the Wyndham and Banerjee series are available now: A Rising Man Smoke and Ashes Death in the East The Shadows of Men

'An exceptional historical crime novel' C.J. Sansom India, 1919. Desperate for a fresh start, Captain Sam Wyndham arrives to take up an important post in Calcutta's police force. He is soon called to the scene of a horrifying murder. The victim was a senior official, and a note left in his mouth warns the British to leave India - or else. With the stability of the Empire under threat, Wyndham and Sergeant 'Surrender-not' Banerjee must solve the case quickly. But there are some who will do anything to stop them... **A THE TIMES/SUNDAY TIMES CRIME CLUB TOP 40 BOOK OF LAST FIVE YEARS** *Abir Mukherjee's blockbuster contemporary thriller HUNTED is available to pre-order NOW* ---- Praise for the Wyndham and Banerjee series : 'A thought-provoking rollercoaster' Ian Rankin 'Does for the Raj what Philip Kerr did for the Reich' The Times/Sunday Times Crime Club 'Highly entertaining' Daily Telegraph If you enjoyed A Rising Man, further books in the Wyndham and Banerjee series are available now: A Necessary Evil Smoke and Ashes Death in the East The Shadows of Men

In the first of a new mystery series, we meet Nora Best as she flees her old life, cheating husband and all, and takes to the road with an Airstream trailer. Nora Best is the envy of her friends. She's just turned fifty and has traded in her home with The Perfect-Ass Husband for an Airstream trailer and an adventure of a lifetime across the US. But during their leaving party, Nora finds her husband in a compromising position with a friend. Storming out of the party she jumps into her truck with no idea how to tow the Airstream or where she's going. Nora ends up in a campground in the mountains of Wyoming, drowning her sorrows with its managers, Brad and Miranda. When she is woken by a frantic Miranda after Brad has disappeared and bloodstains have been found around the campsite, Nora finds herself caught up in an adventure she could never have expected . . . facing a charge of murder.

A skilled ex-soldier fights a Libyan terrorist and leagues of man-eating mutants in post-apocalyptic America—from a USA Today–bestselling author. The devastating nuclear nightmare of the Great War brings civilization to the brink of destruction. Only Ben Raines and his tireless Rebels share the dream of rebuilding society out of the smoldering remains of America…. The power-mad Middle Eastern terrorist, Khamasin, has already begun his bloodthirsty assault on America's southern tier. But an even deadlier threat lurks in the plague-ridden ruins of the country's once-great cities, where crazed, flesh-eating packs of starved mutants hunt for fresh, human kill. Raines and his Rebels are in for the battle of their lives. But the do-or-die freedom fighters are willing to face Hell on Earth to strike a blow for America's survival. Seventh in the long-running series!