{"product_id":"a-dead-hand-a-crime-in-calcutta-9780547394497","title":"A Dead Hand: A Crime in Calcutta","description":"When Jerry Delfont, an aimless travel writer with writer's block (his \"dead hand\"), receives a letter from an American philanthropist, Mrs. Merrill Unger, with news of a scandal involving an Indian friend of her son's, he is intrigued. Who is the dead boy, found on the floor of a cheap hotel room? How and why did he die? And what is Jerry to make of a patch of carpet, and a package containing a human hand? \u003cbr\u003eHe is swiftly captivated by the beautiful, mysterious Mrs. Unger--and revived by her tantric massages--but the circumstances surrounding the dead boy cause him increasingly to doubt the woman's motives and the exact nature of her philanthropy. Without much to go on, Jerry pursues answers from the teeming streets of Calcutta to Uttar Pradesh. It is a dark and twisted trail of obsession and need. \u003cbr\u003eBeautifully written, \u003cem\u003eA Dead Hand\u003c\/em\u003e demonstrates the powerful evocation of place and character that has made Paul Theroux one of the most perceptive and engaging writers today.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eTheroux, Paul:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - PAUL THEROUX is the author of many highly acclaimed books. His novels include \u003ci\u003eThe Lower River\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eJungle Lover\u003c\/i\u003es, and \u003ci\u003eThe Mosquito Coast\u003c\/i\u003e, and his renowned travel books include \u003ci\u003eGhost Train to the Eastern Star\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDark Star Safari\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Hawaii and on Cape Cod.","brand":"Houghton Mifflin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50325223604498,"sku":"9780547394497","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_427bc902-5213-4226-84f1-15542ccb7cee.jpg?v=1727683215","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/a-dead-hand-a-crime-in-calcutta-9780547394497","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}