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Pirate Vishnu (A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery) Paperback – January 21, 2014

by Gigi Pandian (Author)

4.3 310 ratings

Book 2 of 6: A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery

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A WHIRLWIND OF ADVENTURE

“Fast-paced and fascinating as Jaya’s investigation leads her this time to India and back to her own family's secrets.” —Susan C. Shea, Author of the Dani O’Rourke Mysteries

A century-old treasure map of San Francisco’s Barbary Coast. Sacred riches from India. Two murders, one hundred years apart. And a love triangle… Historian Jaya Jones has her work cut out for her.

1906. Shortly before the Great San Francisco Earthquake, Pirate Vishnu strikes the San Francisco Bay. An ancestor of Jaya’s who came to the U.S. from India draws a treasure map…

Present Day. Over a century later, the cryptic treasure map remains undeciphered. From San Francisco to the southern tip of India, Jaya pieces together her ancestor’s secrets, maneuvers a complicated love life she didn’t count on, and puts herself in the path of a killer to restore a revered treasure.

Praise for PIRATE VISHNU:

“Forget about Indiana Jones. Jaya Jones is swinging into action, using both her mind and wits to solve a mystery...Readers will be ensnared by this entertaining tale. Four stars.” – RT Book Reviews

“Move over Vicky Bliss and Joan Wilder, historian Jaya Jones is here to stay! Mysterious maps, legendary pirates, and hidden treasure—Jaya’s latest quest is a whirlwind of adventure.” — Chantelle Aimée Osman of The Sirens of Suspense

“Jaya Jones is a young academic detective with no equal in terms of wits, style and creativity…I applaud author Gigi Pandian for unearthing the forgotten history of India's first immigrants to the United States and serving it up with plenty of suspense, humor and bhangra beats. If you are searching for a spicy new amateur sleuth series, this is the one.” — Sujata Massey, Author of The Sleeping Dictionary and the Rei Shimura Mysteries

“Globe-trotting historian Jaya Jones is off on another treasure hunt and it’s a worthy follow-up to Gigi Pandian’s award-winning debut mystery, Artifact. Pirate Vishnu is fast-paced and fascinating as Jaya’s investigation leads her this time to India and back to her own family's secrets.” — Susan C. Shea, Author of the Dani O’Rourke Mysteries

Books in the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Series:

FOOL'S GOLD (Novella prequel to ARTIFACT featured in OTHER PEOPLE'S BAGGAGE)
ARTIFACT (#1)
PIRATE VISHNU (#2)

Part of the Henery Press Mystery Series Collection, if you like one, you'll probably like them all...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Gigi Pandian is the child of cultural anthropologists from New Mexico and the southern tip of India. After being dragged around the world during her childhood, she tried to escape her fate when she left a PhD program for art school. But adventurous academic characters wouldn't stay out of her head. Thus was born the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Series. The first book in the series, Artifact, was awarded a Malice Domestic Grant.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Henery Press; First Edition (January 21, 2014)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 314 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1938383974
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1938383977
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.71 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,838,479 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #12,095 in International Mystery & Crime (Books)
- #16,305 in Traditional Detective Mysteries (Books)
- #32,564 in Amateur Sleuths

Customer Reviews:
4.3 310 ratings

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Gigi Pandian

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GIGI PANDIAN is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning mystery author, breast cancer survivor, and locked-room mystery enthusiast. Her email newsletter is filled with bookish fun and comes with a free novelette and mini cookbook: www.gigipandian.com/subscribe

Gigi writes the Secret Staircase mysteries, Accidental Alchemist mysteries, and Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt mysteries, all of which are fun, lighthearted mysteries without any graphic violence.

Gigi's debut novel was awarded a Malice Domestic Grant, she's been short-listed for the Edgar Award, and her mysteries have won Anthony, Agatha, Lefty, and Derringer awards. She lives in northern California with her husband and a gargoyle who watches over the backyard garden.

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4.3 out of 5

310 global ratings

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iiiireader

Great second book in this funny and informative mystery series

Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2015

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"Pirate Vishnu" is the second in a series of mystery by Gigi Pandian. The series features Jaya Jones, a young Indian-American history professor. I really enjoyed the first book in this series "Artifact" and was hoping the second would be almost as good. Actually, it was even better. This whodunnit chases all over the map from San Francisco to India and back again.

Jaya is once again joined by her friends Lane, Nadia, and Sanjay. Along the way, we get a brief history lesson about San Francisco at the time of the Great Earthquake of 1906, some of the signs of struggle of the Indian people against the British colonial rule, and also about magicians and the "spiritualism" trend of the turn of the last century. In addition to the friends we already know, we get introduced to several new characters that I hope to see in future books - Tamarind the librarian (a kind of goth meets punk lady) and Naveen, an unpleasant fellow professor who is Jaya's competition for tenure at their university.

The story follows Jaya's quest for finding the treasure that equals the X marks the spot on a treasure map supposedly written by her ancestor and great-uncle. The map is brought to her one night by Steven Healy who is promptly murdered almost immediately after meeting with Jaya. After that, to quote Sherlock Holmes, the game is afoot.

When I read Ms. Pandian's first book in this series, I was reminded of Elizabeth Peter's famous sleuth, Amelia Peabody. After reading this book, I am once again reminded of Ms. Peters but this time of one of my favorite sleuths - Vicky Bliss. Jaya is certainly her own character but she has the same intrepid spirit and sense of fun that I have picked up from Ms. Peters characters over the years. When I compare them, I am paying some of the highest respect I can to Ms. Pandian.

The book was a fun and quick read. I enjoyed it very much and recommend it highly. I suggest starting with the first book "Artifact" to get the utmost enjoyment from the read. I am looking forward to reading the soon to be released third book in this series. I also hope that Ms. Pandian writes many more books with this cast of characters. I would like to think of having this much fun reading books for years to come.

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Kait Carson

Keep me interested long into the night

Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2014

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A fun read. The second offering of this series really develops the characters and the relationship of Jaya and Sanjay. The mystery hinges on Jaya's great uncle and his adventures in 1906 San Francisco. Yep, there's and earthquake in the story - but most of th action takes place in the months before. And let's not forget the treasure map or treasure. I started this book as I was settling into bed. I couldn't bear to put it down until the sun was creeping over the horizon. Pandian knows her stuff, and she tells one heck of a story.

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Cozy Up With Kathy

a unique modern mystery intimately tied to historic lore

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2015

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Pirate Vishnu by Gigi Pandian
The Second Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery

Pirate Vishnu is the best of both worlds: a unique modern mystery intimately tied to historic lore. Pirate Vishnu is an adventure mystery puzzle wrapped in history. Jaya Jones is once again thrust in the middle of intrigue when a man challenges her family history stating that her great granduncle Anand did not die heroically saving a friend in the San Fransisco earthquake of 1906. Instead, he lived only to steal treasure from the man's family. Given a treasure map written by Anand, Jaya searches through San Franciscan, Indian, and her own family history to find the truth. We also get to read the story of Anand as the events really happened as the author intersperses chapters of the modern day mystery with the tale from the past.

This book grabbed me from the start and never let me go. The alternating stories of past and present was a brilliant move by Gigi Pandian letting readers experience Anand's adventurous life in two ways; through his truth as it happened and how family lore and history remembered it. Giving us his truth gave Jaya's discoveries even more impact.

As for the characters...what a fantastic group! Jaya Jones is a wonderful character even if she is "the worst Indian ever". Jaya is a small, but formidable woman; an intelligent historian looking for tenure who happens to get involved in some amazing adventures. We have her best friend Sanjay, the Hindu Houdini, always there to help, perhaps more than Jaya realizes. The mysterious Lane, a romantic enigma who comes and goes like the San Fransisco fog. In Pirate Vishnu we also learn more about Nadia, Jaya's Russian landlady, and Tamarind, librarian extraordinaire (Shut. Up.). There's also the slimy Naveen, vying for tenure with Jaya and willing to go to great lengths to get it. We also meet the cast from the past-Anand and his friends, Li and Samuel. These characters are just as vibrant as the people from the present, their story just as vital.

Pirate Vishnu delivers everything you want in a mystery, interesting, believable characters you care about, locations that come alive and make you want to explore them yourself, a dash of romance, history that comes to life, and a challenging puzzle to solve.

Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2018

Verified Purchase

Are these books GREAT? No. But they’re enjoyable. I didn’t enjoy the multiple POVs in this one or a disastrous recanting at the end but for some reason I still appreciate this series and will probably read the next books.

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