The Mystery of the Parsee Lawyer: Arthur Conan Doyle, George Edalji and the Case of the Foreigner in the English Village

(Paperback)

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'Basu's account of how Arthur Conan Doyle set about trying to get a pardon for Edalji is in itself a fine piece of detective work.' The Times Compulsive reading. A.N. Wilson 'Nails the nastiness of a peculiarly English scandal.' The Spectator 'A potent mix of racial injustice, Sherlockian mystery and Shrabani's signature storytelling.' Lucy Worsley In the village of Great Wyrley near Birmingham, someone is mutilating horses. Someone is also sending threatening letters to the vicarage, where the vicar, Shahpur Edalji, is a Parsi convert to Christianity and the first Indian to have a parish in England. His son George quiet, socially awkward and the only boy at school with distinctly Indian features grows up into a successful barrister, till he is improbably linked to and then prosecuted for the above crimes in a case that leaves many convinced that justice hasnt been served. When he is released early, his conviction still hangs over him. Having lost faith in the police and the legal system, George Edalji turns to the one man he believes can clear his name the one whose novels he spent his time reading in prison, the creator of the worlds greatest detective. When he writes to Arthur Conan Doyle asking him to meet, Conan Doyle agrees. From the author of Victoria and Abdul comes an eye-opening look at race and an unexpected friendship in the early days of the twentieth century, and the perils of being foreign in a country built on empire.

Reviews

Basu's account of how Arthur Conan Doyle set about trying to get a pardon and compensation for Edalji is in itself a fine piece of detective work. * The Times *
Compulsive reading. The bizarre story of Conan Doyle as detective and champion of justice has all the hallmarks of Shrabani Basus genius. * A.N. Wilson *
It nails the nastiness of a peculiarly English scandal. * The Spectator *
A potent mix of racial injustice, Sherlockian mystery and Shrabani's signature storytelling. -- Lucy Worsley
Compelling. * Prospect *

Author Bio

Shrabani Basu is a journalist and author. Her books include Victoria & Abdul: The Extraordinary True Story of the Queens Closest Confidant, now a major motion picture, Spy Princess: The Life of Noor Inayat Khan and For King and Another Country: Indian Soldiers on the Western Front, 191418. In 2010, she set up the Noor Inayat Khan Memorial Trust and campaigned for a memorial for the Second World War heroine, which was unveiled by Princess Anne in London in November 2012. In August 2020 she was invited by English Heritage to unveil the Blue Plaque for Noor Inayat Khan in London.