Inspector Ghote Books in Order

Inspector Ghote investigates an attack on Mr. Perfect, secretary to the influential Lala Varde, while also tackling the puzzling theft of one rupee. Corruption and his employer's hostility obstruct the Bombay detective's efforts to establish the facts.

American philanthropist Frank Masters dies of arsenic poisoning, sending Inspector Ghote into his charitable foundation for homeless children. Unreliable witnesses and two troublesome street boys frustrate an investigation whose prominent victim guarantees intense public attention.

Inspector Ghote investigates the murder of an American visitor in Bombay, only to become entangled in conflicting loyalties. Sorting out the crime requires him to navigate uncertainties about those involved and the obligations pulling him in different directions.

Sent to a London police conference, Inspector Ghote is unexpectedly pressed to find a relative's missing seventeen-year-old niece, known as the Peacock. His unofficial search reveals a city far removed from the orderly England he imagined.

Inspector Ghote is assigned to protect a flamingo at Bombay Zoo, then encounters other bizarre practical jokes, including a donkey substituted for a racehorse. Hunting the prankster becomes more serious when the sequence of humiliations leads to murder.

Inspector Ghote investigates a politician's wife's suspicious death fifteen years after it occurred in a provincial town. A powerful suspect, hostile locals, and a holy man's protest threaten to prevent him from uncovering the truth.

Traveling to Calcutta to collect a notorious art swindler, Inspector Ghote anticipates a quiet train journey. A talkative passenger with dyed hair, dark glasses, and suggestive initials makes him question whether his quarry is already aboard.

Kidnappers seeking a wealthy businessman's son accidentally seize his tailor friend's child instead, but still demand payment. Inspector Ghote must secure the boy's release while navigating the difference between a rich family's resources and a poor father's desperation.

After difficulties on an anti-pickpocket patrol, Inspector Ghote is transferred to the Black-money and Allied Transactions Squad. Suspicion surrounds his efficient new colleagues, while troubling thoughts about his family complicate an already precarious position.

Inspector Ghote investigates the death of Bollywood villain Dhartiraj, killed by a falling stage light. Rival stars, a secretive stand-in, and an intimidating studio owner complicate the case, while Ghote's hopes of recognition threaten his judgment.

Inspector Ghote travels to the Indian countryside to protect retired judge Asif Ibrahim from threatening letters. The stubborn judge obstructs him, while plans to publish memoirs suggest that several people may fear what he will reveal.

Western visitors gather at the Maharajah of Bhopore's opulent palace in 1930s India, joining his heir, officials, and entourage. When the ruler is murdered, the district superintendent must examine a household filled with potential suspects.

Inspector Ghote is sent to California to retrieve a newspaper magnate's daughter from an ashram before her arranged marriage. An overbearing private detective and the elusive spiritual leader complicate his efforts, which take an unexpectedly deadly turn.

While escorting an aging British film star through Bombay's red-light district, Inspector Ghote encounters a murder. His glimpse of the respected Sheriff leaving a brothel makes the official his suspect, creating a delicate search for proof.

Inspector Ghote witnesses a superior officer kill a sergeant and must choose between making an arrest and protecting the police force. Concealing the death leaves him facing an inquiry and a growing conflict with his conscience.

Inspector Ghote is summoned to investigate a body discovered on the billiard table at the Ooty Club. A former ambassador expects a master detective and insists on assisting, complicating Ghote's examination of the club's suspects.

After wealthy Ramrao Pendke is murdered in a Bombay watch shop, Inspector Ghote doubts the confession extracted from its owner. Investigating the victim's home village puts him between impatient superiors and influential figures defending rural traditions.

This collection gathers Inspector Ghote's shorter investigations and includes Keating's account of the detective's creation and development. The stories follow the Bombay officer's patient methods, while the introductory material connects his fictional career with the author's work.

An official pressures Inspector Ghote into spying on a blackmailer, drawing him into illegal acts and a murder he witnesses in hiding. As he investigates another extortion scheme, he becomes vulnerable to blackmail himself.

Inspector Ghote investigates stolen examination papers at a Bombay college after a student nearly dies from an overdose. The cheating scandal draws him into academic rivalries, campus unrest, and the question of who wanted to discredit the principal.

Inspector Ghote travels to Banaras to investigate the murder of a respected former minister and freedom fighter. His methodical enquiries unfold against the city’s religious life, while questions of guilt, morality, and redemption complicate the case.

Inspector Ghote investigates stolen experimental medicine made from snake venom at a Bombay research institute. Ordered to catch the smuggler on another charge, he faces an ethical dilemma that becomes more complicated when the enquiry turns deadly.

Inspector Ghote accompanies his wife to Calcutta after she inherits a mansion and money. A crumbling property, hostile occupants, and an unhelpful solicitor awaken his suspicions, drawing the couple into a dangerous web of corruption and competing interests.

Inspector Ghote is assigned a series of burglaries by an exceptionally agile thief, though he would rather investigate a murder. The unexpected return of Swedish colleague Axel Svensson both assists and complicates his efforts to understand the case.

Newly promoted Inspector Ghote hopes to spend leave with his pregnant wife. Instead, a retired police commissioner asks him to examine a British woman’s apparently motiveless suicide, reopening a case already handled by an old rival.

Inspector Ghote discovers his assistant’s severed head in his office rubbish bin. His superior dismisses the victim as unimportant and orders quiet disposal, forcing Ghote to weigh obedience against his obligation to investigate a colleague’s murder.