I tried to use my experiences—the best and worst of them—to provide a glimpse into expatriate life in India. Many of the anecdotes in this book, both positive and negative, were inspired by my time there. The scene in Poona, for instance, where Danny encounters a herd of buffalo on North Main Road, may seem far-fetched. Yet, it happened to me. More than once. I lived for eighteen months in a development directly across the road from ABC Farms in Koregaon Park. And, yes, the buffaloes still take the right of way, even if ABC Farms is no more.

The monsoon is a powerful giver and taker. A successful season brings a bounty of crops to the Subcontinent, while a disappointing one can result in ruin for farmers and shortages for city dwellers. For me, it was always a long, wet time that I used for thinking. And plotting. The monsoon looms large throughout this book, setting the mood as it pursues Danny and drenches Bombay. To describe this awesome meteorological phenomenon, I relied on memories of days and nights spent trapped inside, happy to be safe and dry, as the rain drummed on the roof and lashed the windows.

Descending the Western Ghats of Maharashtra was the most terrifying ride of my life. And climbing the ghats was the second most terrifying ride of my life. I do not exaggerate. Today you take a safe, modern superhighway from the coastal plain up to the Deccan Plateau. But when I first made the trip in the 1990s, there was only a narrow, two-way road, pocked with holes and hardly a guardrail in sight. I was certain we’d never make it. In this book, the passages detailing the vertiginous heights, sharp turns, and near misses are surely inadequate to describe the actual, stomach-churning fright of the drive.

A final thought on Bombay Monsoon. During the twenty-one-month Emergency, civil liberties were curtailed, political opponents were jailed, and the press was censored. Democratic institutions were restored in 1977, when Mrs. Gandhi finally lifted the Emergency. In researching this book, I was struck by how quickly democracy can be swept aside. In our country—one year before the Emergency, in fact—Richard Nixon resigned from power when it became clear his support was gone. He did not attempt a coup, as, for all intents and purposes, Mrs. Gandhi did in 1975. In 2021, we survived a brazen attempt on our own democracy. The insurrection failed, but that doesn’t mean the threat is gone. The Emergency should be a lesson to all who cherish democracy today.

I hope my love for India shines through the heavy weather in Bombay Monsoon. If you’ve enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a rating or a review on Goodreads or any of the popular online portals.

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