Deceivers — John Masters

When William Savage brings his new bride back to Madhya, the Indian town that he governs for the Honourable East India Company, his greatest fear is his ability to satisfy his young wife and live up to her father's expectations. But on their first night in Madhya, William witnesses a terrible mass murder, which will lead him into the darkest depths of human nature. Finding the murderers is now his highest priority, but without the support of his superiors, there is little officially that he can do. William must choose whether to safeguard his career or to defy orders, and find the murderers at any cost. But this is bigger than he at first suspected. If he wants to find justice, he must first go amongst the murderers, and become one of them.



First published 1952, The Deceivers, whilst a work of fiction, draws inspiration from a real murderous cult, the 'Thuggees', who stalked the roads of India for hundreds of years, murdering millions of people, until they were uncovered and finally stopped in the 1830s.