** A THE SUNDAY TIMES 100 BEST CRIME NOVELS AND THRILLERS SINCE 1945**

**WINNER 2018 WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE**

'Even better than his first' Daily Telegraph

India, 1920. Captain Sam Wyndham and Sergeant Banerjee of Calcutta Police must investigate the dramatic assassination of a Maharaja's son...

Sam Wyndham is visiting the kingdom of Sambalpore, home to diamond mines and the beautiful Palace of the Sun.

But when the Maharaja's eldest son is assassinated, Wyndham realises that the realm is riven with conflict. Prince Adhir was unpopular with religious groups, while his brother - now in line to the throne - appears to be a feckless playboy.

As Wyndham and Sergeant 'Surrender-not' Banerjee endeavour to unravel the mystery, they become entangled in a dangerous world. They must find the murderer, before the murderer finds them.

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2018 HISTORICAL AND GOLD DAGGERS*

*LONGLISTED FOR THE 2018 CWA STEEL DAGGER*

**Praise for the Wyndham and Banerjee series :

'An exceptional historical crime novel' C.J. Sansom**

'A thought-provoking rollercoaster' Ian Rankin

'Cracking... A journey into the dark underbelly of the British Raj' Daily Express

If you enjoyed A Necessary Evil, further books in the Wyndham and Banerjee series are available now:

A Rising Man

Smoke and Ashes

Death in the East

The Shadows of Men