COMP CLOSED | Book Giveaway | A Disappearance in Fiji

A charming debut historical mystery set in 1914 Fiji.

1914, Fiji: Akal Singh, 25, would rather be anywhere but this tropical paradise – or, as he calls it, ‘this godforsaken island’. After a promising start to his police career in Hong Kong, Akal has been sent to the farflung colony of Fiji as punishment for a humiliating professional mistake. Lonely and grumpy, Akal plods through his work and dreams of a return to Hong Kong, or even his native India.

An indentured Indian woman goes missing from a sugarcane plantation and Fiji’s newspapers scream ‘kidnapping’, just as the Indian indentured servitude program is being scrutinised for alleged abuses. Fiji’s inspector-general reluctantly assigns Akal the case, as the senior Indian police officer available. Akal, eager to achieve redemption, agrees – but soon finds himself far more invested than he could ever have expected.

When he arrives at the plantation to investigate, Akal must confront the brutal realities of the indentured workers’ existence and the racism of the British colonisers in Fiji – along with his own thorny notions of identity and class. His interrogations of the white plantation owners, Indian indentured labourers and local Fijians yield only one conclusion: there is far more to this case than meets the eye.

Nilima Rao’s sparkling debut mystery offers an unflinching look at the impact of colonialism, even as it brims with wit, vibrant characters and fascinating historical detail.

‘This is an utterly charming novel. The setting is exotic and the characters are intriguing. Nilima Rao is an author well worth discovering.’ – Alexander McCall Smith, bestselling author of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series

Author note:

‘I’d never really paid much attention to my Fijian Indian heritage, growing up in North Queensland. Witnessing the depth and breadth of poverty in India on a trip in my twenties prompted me to start thinking about my great grandparents who went to Fiji in the early 1900’s to escape this poverty. I started researching the indentured servitude program under which they went to Fiji to work in the cane fields. This program replaced slavery as the source of cheap labour in the British Empire but was hardly a huge leap forward. It was exploitative and left the largely illiterate and desperate people who signed up, subject to abuses at the hands of the plantation owners, with little recourse. The exploitation of migrant workers continues today. Examples include Indian workers in the Middle East, Filipina domestic workers in Hong Kong and Pacific Islanders who come to Australia to harvest fruit. I hope my novel provides a human face to such stories.’

About the author:

Nilima Rao is a Fijian Indian Australian who has always referred to herself as ‘culturally confused’. She has since learned that we are all confused in some way (and has been published on the topic by Australia’s Special Broadcasting Service as part of the SBS Emerging Writers Competition, so now feels better about the whole thing). When she isn’t writing, Nilima can be found wrangling data (the dreaded day job) or wandering around Melbourne laneways in search of the next new wine bar. A Disappearance in Fiji is her first novel, and she is currently working on the second in the series.

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   2. Competition closes on the 8th August 2023, winners will be notified via email by 10th August 2023.
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