Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor

Age of Vice, set in India, is a compelling crime thriller mixed with a family saga.

Synopsis

It begins with the police finding a young man named Ajay inebriated in a flashy Mercedes surrounded by a group of dead bodies. The police suspect he just rammed through the crowd sleeping on the pavement. At first glance, the police see Ajay as a man vested in wealth, but upon closer inspection, they realize he is a servant. When the police ask him what happened to cause him to crash his employer’s car, he remains silent.

The story unfolds from here, starting with Ajay’s impoverished youth to how he eventually came to work for one of India’s most wealthy and powerful families; and how he wound up in that vehicle. It is a story of violence, crime, and extravagance juxtaposed with extreme poverty.

Review of Age of Vice

It has three main POVs and a few extra thrown in for good measure.

It is an epic book, clocking in at over 500 pages, but it did not feel excessively long. Sometimes there would be pages of dialogue, but then it would be followed by a single paragraph taking up the whole page, so it felt balanced.

I thoroughly enjoyed Ajay’s sections. I would have been happy reading a whole book from just his pov.

I’m not super into reading about bad people doing bad things, aka crime novels, but Neda and Ajay were enough to keep my interest going. Although, the other characters brought more clarity into what was going on in this climate.

I believe Age of Vice is the first book in a trilogy, so the cliffhanger ending makes a lot more sense. My one qualm would be that there was loads of build up, but towards the end, it felt slightly rushed and chaotic. However, it did have a cinematic feel to it. Hopefully, the next book will clear everything up.

I highly recommend trying this if you enjoy thrillers and crime novels.

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Expected Publication: 03 January 2023

Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

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