★Rao, Nilima. A Shipwreck in Fiji. Soho Crime. (A Sergeant Akal Singh Mystery, Bk. 2). Jun. 2025. 272p. ISBN 9781641295475. $29.95. M

In 1915, Sergeant Akal Singh, an Indian Sikh, is based out of Fiji’s capital, Suva, when the inspector-general sends him to former capital Levuka to handle a number of minor issues. With his Fijian companion (and sole friend in Fiji), Constable Taviti Tukana, Akal escorts a young English woman and her aunt to Levuka. Akal has to be careful not be seen as too familiar with a European woman, but she feels no parallel restraint. Then there’s a murder that they’re led to believe was carried out by German marauders. Akal and Taviti capture them, but the local chieftain impounds them for violating local customs and won’t hand them over to British authorities. They find a letter in a secret compartment, and a man is killed after translating it. This time, it can’t be the Germans; they’re locked up. It’s up to Akal to solve the riddle, unearth the killer, and convince the chief to hand over the Germans to the British. VERDICT A lively story with engaging characters and fascinating bits about British colonial governance in Fiji. Rao’s second tale about Sgt. Akal (after A Disappearance in Fiji) is first-rate.