Adela's Shadow

This boundary is one that Gregson respects: hooking her story to the ‘fishing fleet’ and following the fortunes of three Englishwomen who set off for 1920s India in search of adventure, husbands and, in the case of one, a tragic family history. What makes these characters more endearing than those of M.M. Kaye’s novels are that, far from being the archetypal snooty memsahib of Raj fiction, the main protagonist here is poor and struggling, reminiscent almost of a modern-day backpacker trekking across India with foolhardy courage.

The first half of the book, charting the long voyage, is rich in convincing detail. However, credibility is under strain once the women actually arrive in India; a place in which, apart from the odd servant or street child, Indians are mysteriously absent. Of course, such cocooned lives were not unusual for memsahibs of the time. But, apart from cringing at the occasional inaccuracy (the fattening of goats for Diwali?), Indian readers will find themselves longing for recognisable characters and, of course, more than a passing nod to the growing Independence movement, which is perhaps unwittingly demeaned by barely earning a mention.