Abandoned by user

Given my obsessive interest in colonial India, I'm surprised that I didn't like this entry in the Mary Russell series more than I did.

Perhaps coming on the heels of Justice Hall, which was my favorite of the seven that I have read, this one suffered by comparison. Like Murder by Death (with whom I buddy read - huzzah! You can find her review here), I really hated the blood sport/hunting scenes. 

Which brings me to a digression. What the hell is it with people and their burning desire to slaughter things for fun? It's fucking gross. Fox hunts, pig hunts, lion hunts, whatever. It is seriously messed up to kill things that you aren't going to eat just for fun. In my opinion.

Yes, if you are one of those people, I just insulted you. I'm not taking it back. (And let me be quite clear that I do not consider culturally-appropriate subsistence hunting, or even ranching, to be the same thing. Killing an animal for food, or in self defense, is not the same as killing an animal for sport. I eat meat. I do not consider this to be hypocrisy).

Anyway, back to the book. It was a weak entry in the series and the connection to Kipling's Kim wasn't enough to elevate it for me. Although I did love Bindra a whole lot. I definitely wouldn't recommend starting here.