Reema Ray, private investigator and food writer. She didn't set out to become Calcutta's expert in infidelity cases, but that is where her detective agency has taken her. When the deceit gets too much, she finds a welcome distraction and a means to pay the bills by becoming a food critic for a magazine. And since she once dreamed of becoming a pastry chef, she doesn't mind much, does she? But what really turns her on is solving a juicy mystery. Her worlds collide when a gourmet provisions supplier she had once profiled ends up dead under suspicious circumstances. She might be rusty, but her food-obscured nose can still sniff out a murder, and she decides to launch her own investigation. Then her ex-boyfriend shows up at her doorstep when he finds himself being treated as prime suspect in the kidnapping of his own wife! Suddenly, Reema is handling not one but two cases. With no access to official evidence, she relies on the meddling group of do-gooders she has dubbed the Calcutta Crime-Fighter's Club. If all this wasn't trouble enough, the alluring Shayak Gupta turns up around every corner, and while she can't seem to resist him, she doesn't believe a word he says either. This first Reema Ray mystery follows a comical ride through Calcutta as Reema comes to terms with her feelings about the men in her life while whipping up delicious meals and being beset by criminals and the police alike!

As a private detective in Calcutta she had impressed maverick security expert Shayak Gupta with her sleuthing skills, leading to a new job with his firm Titanium. Now in Mumbai, Reema is given the case of the year - the murder of Ashutosh Dhingre, former assistant to fading Bollywood superstar Kimaaya Kapoor. The location of the crime is Kimaaya's private island. The suspects - her house guests, and Kimaaya herself! Reema learns of Kimaaya's prior relationship with Shayak, and can't help but think it is a conflict of interest. Equally puzzling is Shayak's repeated absence. And what of the continuing attraction simmering between her and her secretive boss? Despite the state-of-the-art facilities at Titanium, Reema is soon back to her own devices - which sometimes involves cooking up something for a spot of culinary meditation - to get to the bottom of a crime that points to a deep and sinister plot. As the body count increases, can Reema crack the case before more blood is spilled?

TIMES ARE TOUGH FOR SAMSON RYDER. a Melbourne-based, Anglo-Indian private investigator who likes his facts cold and his curries hot. A secret guilt over the death of his sister has left him guarded and closed, costing him his relationship with his girlfriend, his parents and his faith. When a wealthy Indian industrialist engages him to investigate how his daughter, a rising Bollywood starlet, died on a location shooting in Australia, Samson treats it as easy money. After all, the police had ruled out foul play. He soon comes to realise that this is also his opportunity for redemption, to help a family find the answers to their grief, the answers he couldn't give to his own parents. To uncover the truth, Samson goes back to the city of his birth, Mumbai and teams up with Mabel, his interpreter, Godmother and second-best cook in the world. Together, they prise off the glittering mask of Bollywood and unveil an industry where friendships are fickle, affairs are currency, black magic and curses are rampant and hidden dangers lurk all around. Will Sam uncover the truth or will he be the next victim?

Madhumita Bhattacharyya is the author of four crime thrillers. The Reema Ray series – The Masala Murder; Dead in a Mumbai Minute; Goa Undercover; and Murder at the Temple. Prior to her fiction career, she was a journalist at The Telegraph Kolkata. She lives in Bangalore with her husband, daughter, and their dog.

History is often considered a dry, boring and unimportant subject at school. Masala History by Siva aims to change this perception and make it engaging and interesting for everyone. In addition, there is also a deliberate attempt to sing the tune of unsung heroes and bring to light the amazing lives and works of those who have been forgotten and not given their rightful place in history. With kid-friendly content, the project presents a collection of stories to capture the attention of schoolchildren and adults alike and hopes to help initiate curiosity and conversations around this subject. Each vignette in this book will take you back in time, delving deep into untold stories and firing up your imagination.. So pick your copy, grab a masala chai or your favourite coffee and delve into tales rich and spicy! Savour it, talk about it with friends & family. Spread the histories of where we come from. After all, if you don’t know where you come from, you don’t know where you are going.

Mustachioed sleuth Vish Puri tackles his greatest fears in a case involving the poisoning death of the elderly father of a leading Pakistani cricketer, whose demise is linked to the Indian and Pakistani mafias and the violent 1947 partition of India.