A killer in the family A novel

Ahmad blends a serial killer mystery with the story of a rocky arranged marriage in his uneven debut. Ali Azeem, 28, works as a wedding photographer in Mumbai, where his newly broke parents set him up with Maryam Khan, a medical school graduate who aims to become a psychiatrist. Meanwhile, rumors of corruption swirl around Maryam's father, Abbas, a real estate mogul in New York City. Unrepentant party-boy Ali catches the attention of Maryam's brash older sister, Farhan, and they start an affair, which continues after Ali and Maryam are married and living in New York. Farhan has led a troubled life--she's addicted to cocaine and heroin, and her parents sent her away at 16 to have an abortion in Switzerland. Suddenly, Abbas sends Farhan to Tokyo to start a jewelry-making business. In Japan, she receives mysterious postcards from the Jackson Heights Killer, who has murdered eight Indian girls and seems to have a connection to Farhan; back in the U.S., Ali starts receiving similar cards. Unfortunately, the serial-killer thread feels at odds with the family drama, but Ahmad effectively portrays New York's billionaire class, lamenting the "quirky, ragged city that no longer exist." Despite some bumps, this will appeal to fans of twisty psychological thrillers. (Apr.)Correction: An earlier version of this review misspelled the names of two characters.

A tense, class-driven thriller about an elite family of the South Asian diaspora, their real estate dynasty, and the search for a serial killer. When 28-year-old Ali Azeem agrees to an arranged marriage with psychiatric resident Maryam Khan, brilliant and gorgeous daughter of real estate billionaire Abbas Khan, he thinks he's hit the jackpot--not least because he's having a hot affair with her ne'er-do-well sister, Farhan. But Ali, whose Mumbai-based family's fortunes have slipped enough that his parents must leave their swank home in the city's Breach Candy district, is less savvy than he thinks; one of the high points of this complex book is how every sign Ali misses leads to his comeuppance. For example, he fails to connect one family member's work with their subterfuge, revealing how little he's had to think ahead during the years he's worked as a successful wedding photographer and bon vivant. As the narrative alternates between Ali and Farhan, the plot thickens. Abbas offers Ali a position in his Manhattan office, but there are many strings attached--as well as rivals for Abbas' approval. Farhan shares with Ali the terrifying story of her near-assault by a man she believes to be the Jackson Heights Killer, or JHK, a murderer who killed and cut out the hearts of at least nine young South Asian women in the early 2000s. Determined to track down the JHK, Farhan enlists retired case detective Orlando Epps to the cause, then Ali: perhaps the book's electrifying opening scene involving a hidden corpse has to do with their success? Or not: Ahmad handles multiple villains, all unreliable narrators in their own way, with great aplomb as the novel hurtles to a possibly predictable but still remarkable finale. Full of big ideas and twists and turns, Ahmad's excellent novel ratchets up the allure--and danger--of power. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.