The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence

by Anita Anand

The dramatic true story of a celebrated young survivor of a 1919 British massacre in India, and his ferocious twenty-year campaign of revenge that made him a hero to hundreds of millions—and spawned a classic legend.

When Sir Michael O’Dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, ordered Brigadier General Reginald Dyer to Amritsar, he wanted Dyer to bring the troublesome city to heel. Sir Michael had become increasingly alarmed at the effect Gandhi was having on his province, as well as recent demonstrations, strikes, and shows of Hindu-Muslim unity. All these things, to Sir Michael, were a precursor to a second Indian revolt. What happened next shocked the world. An unauthorized gathering in the Jallianwallah Bagh in Amritsar in April 1919 became the focal point for Sir Michael’s law enforcers. Dyer marched his soldiers into the walled garden, blocking the only exit. Then, without issuing any order to disperse, he instructed his men to open fire, turning their guns on the thickest parts of the crowd, filled with over a thousand unarmed men, women, and children. For ten minutes, the soldiers continued firing, stopping only when they ran out of ammunition.

According to legend, eighteen-year-old Sikh orphan Udham Singh was injured in the attack, and remained surrounded by the dead and dying until he was able to move the next morning. Then, he supposedly picked up a handful of blood-soaked earth, smeared it across his forehead, and vowed to kill the men responsible.

The truth, as the author has discovered, is more complex—but no less dramatic. Award-winning journalist Anita Anand traced Singh’s journey through Africa, the United States, and across Europe until, in March 1940, he finally arrived in front of O’Dwyer himself in a London hall ready to shoot him down. The Patient Assassin shines a devastating light on one of history’s most horrific events, but it reads like a taut thriller and reveals the incredible but true story behind a legend that still endures today.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, India, True Crime, Biography, Audiobook, Politics

384 pages, Hardcover

First published April 4, 2019

About the author

Anita Anand is a British radio and television presenter, author, and journalist.

Reviews

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lately, I seem to have had much more luck reading nonfiction. In this case, this fascinating nonfiction book reads like a thriller. It is meticulously researched and cinematic. It’s also extremely educational. Frankly, I do not understand how Britain got away with its colonialism for so long. The first part of this book provides a mesmerizing and detailed account of just some of the barbarity of the Raj. Under British rule, self sufficiency in rural India was destroyed. “The peasant class, forming the majority of India’s population, found itself either starved of ancestral lands or reduced to the status of indentured labour, thanks to a system of punitive taxation. Farmers who continued to work the land were forbidden from growing edible crops. Instead, they were forced by their new foreign overlords to produce cotton and indigo, vital for Britain’s lucrative and growing textile industry.” Indians understandably objected to this, which led to the Indian Mutiny of 1857. In one incidence during the mutiny Indians killed 204 British women and children. In retribution, the British executed around 100,000 sepoys (Indian soldiers working for the British) and tens of thousands of civilians in a series of hideously brutal atrocities. After squashing the mutiny, the British became more wary and harsh to prevent any further insurrection.

This book begins in 1940 with the execution of Udham Singh in London. Udham, a Sikh from India, had spent the past 21 years planning the assassination of Sir Michael O’Dwyer, the man he held responsible for the 1919 massacre carried out by British troops at Jallianwala Bagh, a garden in Amritsar. At the time of the massacre, O’Dwyer was the lieutenant governor of Punjab, but the actual massacre was carried out under the command of Brigadier General Reginald Dyer (later known as The Butcher of Armritsar). O’Dwyer and Dyer feared that political protest would reach Punjab. Suppressing a peaceful political gathering was designed to send a message. Many of the people in the garden were merely eating their lunches. Before he reached the garden, Dyer had already made up his mind to fire on the people immediately, with no preliminary order to disperse being given. The troops started shooting and continued until they ran out of bullets. Dyer’s only regret was that he hadn’t had machine guns. Between 500 and 600 people were killed, and several times that many were wounded, including many children. The British didn’t bother with a body count, or tend to the wounded.

After a thoroughly whitewashed investigation in England, Dyer was forced to resign, but remained a hero in England. O’Dwyer spent the rest of his life praising the actions of the troops. Dyer died of an illness (depriving Udham Singh of the chance to assassinate him), but neither man ever expressed any repentance, however they weren’t alone. This massacre wasn’t the only attack. The British went on to use planes to drop bombs on people on roads and fired machine guns into crowds. The Indians had to be taught a lesson. In the view of another Brigadier General: “Composed as the crowd was of the scum of Delhi city, I am of firm opinion that if they had got a bit more firing given them it would have done them a world of good and their attitude would be much more amenable and respectful, as force is the only thing that an Asiatic has any respect for.” A British reporter in India was critical of the attacks. He collected evidence and challenged the Raj and their whitewash of events. He was arrested and deported. An Indian reporter was sentenced to three years of hard labor. In addition to the violence, there were humiliations. “In Lahore, school children were ordered to parade three times a day for thirty minutes at a time, saluting the British flag as they marched. The order applied to infant classes too, thus children as young as five marched.”

Singh claimed to have been present at Jallianwala Bagh. Whether or not this is true is unknown, but the massacre clearly had a profound impact on him. The last part of the book deals with his travels, alliances and assumed identities. He attracted the attention of the police and MI5 many times so it was surprising that he had no trouble entering a lecture at the India Society in Westminster where he killed O’Dwyer and shot several other men. Singh is now honored in India.

This is an excellent book and its author did a wonderful job with the narration of her audio book. It was just another reminder of how much I have to learn about history.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you know of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre? It is also referred to as the Amritsar massacre. Read this book and find out. Learning about the massacre opens your eyes to British colonialism as with a punch.

The massacre took place on April 13, 1919, in Amritsar which is located in the Punjab province of India. The book tells of the events that led up to the massacre, what happened during the massacre and what transpired in the days and weeks that followed. It looks at long term consequences, years and decades later. It looks at those involved--both those holding the reins of power, the British colonialists, and the Indian people under British domain. It shows readers how people of different nations and cultures see one event with different eyes.

The massacre had profound effects on those who witnessed it. Some came to feel survivor’s guilt. Others sought revenge.

The book follows one man, who at all costs, sought revenge.

The book is not dry. It reads as narrative non-fiction. It vividly portrays an event in history and is at the same time based on in-depth, solid research. That which is uncertain is presented as such. To my eyes, the presentation appears balanced and impartial.

The author reads the audiobook. She is not only an author, but also a journalist and a British-Indian radio and television broadcaster. As a result, she reads rapidly. Her diction is clear but for those listeners of a different background, the speed with which she hurls out Indian names and terms makes listening difficult. You simply have not adequate time to absorb that which is evident and common knowledge to her. She speaks so rapidly that I gave up trying to write down individuals’ names. Her fluency certainly did not make it easier for me to absorb the book’s content. I have therefore given the narration a rating of one star.

I recommend the book with the reservation that I did not come to feel close to the central characters, as I did with the author’s other book which I absolutely adored!

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Sophia: Princess, Suffragette, Revolutionary 5 stars
The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence 4 stars

[Dawn Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seem to be on a real India kick lately [I cannot seem to learn enough about this fascinating country and the people that live there] and so when I saw this book on NetGalley, I jumped at the chance to read more history of this amazing county. I was NOT expecting the book I read.

You would think, that by the title, I would have had a clue that this was not going to be the easiest book to read, but apparently, I was having a stupid day and thought it was going to be another book rich in Indian history and that was that. AND, to be honest, it is about that. But it is also about so much more.

I had not heard of Udham Singh and I absolutely had not heard of [which is a travesty in my opinion] of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre of 1919. The lead up to the actual massacre and then the act itself filled me with rage, sadness and despair for the people that were there and for the survivors of that horrific act [I actually could not speak of it for several days as it made me want to vomit just thinking about it, much less speaking about it]. I mentioned to a friend that in my opinion, not all the monsters came out of Germany - what Michael O'Dwyer and Reginald Dyer did was nothing short of what Hitler did, except that he did it on a bigger stage and scale. Note this quote from the book:
"Sir Michael simply could not understand why his masters in London failed to see the deficits in the natives that he did. It maddened him that the greater autonomy was being given to inferior races. Step by step Britain would lose the entire Raj unless men like him stopped it from happening." This is just one of the many examples of just how one-sided this man was in regards to the Indian people. And the massacre was just a tipping point for him in regard to how he looked and treated and acted about the people of India. And considering that Dyer was born and raised in India, the way he perceived the Indian people and his actions in regards to the massacre continued to surprise me over and over again. I believe there may be a special ring of hell for men like these two.

The problem I had over and over again was my moral compass and what I thought of Udham Singh. Certainly he was a murderer and as the story unfolds, we see him as a user and a liar and someone who is absolutely driven by revenge and vengeance [his disappointment over not being able to kill Dryer is very striking], but at the same time, you see him as someone who loves his country and the men and women and children in it and who sees the massacre as the last straw by the British Raj. At some points, I found myself almost agreeing with him. As O'Dwyer comes home to England and continues to both justify the massacre and spew his hatred of what he deems his "inferiors" [much to the delight of those he chose to surround himself with], you almost wish that Udham Singh would get on with it and kill the man already. It was very much a catch-22 situation and even at this moment of writing this review, I am still troubled by how this book left me. I certainly don't condone murder and vengeance, but I find it difficult to be unsympathetic to Udham Singh.

I always say it is important to know your history, but it also important to know other's history as well, so we will not be doomed [one can hope] to repeat such atrocities. This story is a perfect example of this - this is history we all should know and remember and pray that we never, ever repeat it.

Thank you to the Author, NetGalley and Scribner Publishing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[K.J. Charles]

This was really excellent on the Amritsar massacre and its consequences. Lots of human stories and masses of context, on both a historical and a human level. Really good and sickening on the gross injustice and dehumanisation of the Raj. Makes a real effort to understand Dyer and O'Dwyer, the two self-righteous British officer/rulers who perpetrated the massacre, enforced humiliation on its outraged victims, and tried to paint themselves and the Raj as the victims afterwards. It's as fair as possible, and boy do we side with Singh, the killer who took out O'Dwyer many years on. It is outrageous that my entire school career studying history had nothing to say about India or empire or Indian presence in the UK; Anand's two books so far have provided an incredibly useful corrective.

[Cheenu · Rating 4 out of 5]

One man's terrorist is another man's revolutionary

In 1919, one of the worst atrocities of the British Raj happened with the massacre at Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab.

O'Dwyer was the British Raj's man in charge of the Punjab province and fervently defended the actions of Dyer, the man who ordered the indiscriminate shooting on that fateful day.

21 years later, someone tracked down O'Dwyer, now living the retired life in Britain, and killed him.

This book is a chronicle of that assasin's, Udham Singh, life in the inbetweening years and the events leading up to the assassination.

Unfortunately, this record is pretty patchy. This is probably partially because he wasn't a profligate writer like Bhagat Singh (another more popular revolutionary) was & partially because he managed to mostly slip the radar of intelligence agencies - moving across four continents in the the twenty odd intervening years.

Still, the author has done an excellent job with the limited resources and doesn't fill in the gaps with speculative or creative interpretations.

Highly recommended read for those with an interest in colonialism or the British Raj.

[Mal Warwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're ever tempted to think that colonialism was a good thing, here's the place to start. (I'm assuming you haven't read Adam Hochschild's King Leopold's Ghost, an extraordinary exposé of Belgian rule in what is today the Democratic Republic of the Congo. If not, check it out after this one.) In The Patient Assassin, British-Indian radio and television presenter and journalist Anita Anand explores the darkest episode in the history of the British Raj. In that tragic event shortly after the end of World War I, colonial officials massacred hundreds of unarmed Indian civilians gathered for a peaceful protest. It's called today the Amritsar Massacre.

Rising expectations in India collided with the racism of the British Raj

In April 1919, India troops who had served the British Empire in the Middle East and on the Western Front were flooding back home. They had left thousands of dead behind. And many returned with the hope that in gratitude the British would allow them a measure of freedom. But it was not to be. In the Punjab, the populous northwest province that had contributed huge numbers of troops to the war, tensions were especially high. The hard-line British "lieutenant-governor" (governor, really) viewed any sign of dissent as terrorism. And the troops under his command were, like him, almost invariably racist and intolerant of "disrespect." Given the growing agitation for independence led by Mohandas Gandhi and the Congress Party, and the more radical efforts of other, smaller groups, a confrontation was inevitable.

The Amritsar Massacre came to embody the evil of the Raj

Events came to a head on April 13 at a walled six-acre park in the town of Amritsar called the Jallianwala Bagh. There, some 15,000 unarmed Indian civilians had gathered to celebrate a Sikh holiday and protest the arrest and deportation of two national leaders. The military commander, Acting Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer, sent his troops into the garden and immediately ordered them to open fire on the crowd. He had attempted to bring in machine guns to increase the body count but was unable to force them through the park's narrow entrance.

Dyer commanded the soldiers to shoot those who attempted to escape, and to aim for the young people who were trying to hide by climbing the trees. As hundreds lay dead and dying, Dyer refused to allow medical personnel to help the wounded. Although British sources insisted the number of casualties was 379 dead and approximately 1,100 wounded. Indian sources assert that 1,000 died and 1,500 were wounded. Numbers aside, it was an atrocity that even curmudgeonly colonialist Winston Churchill called "monstrous."

Back home in England, the perpetrators of the Amritsar Massacre became national heroes

General Dyer was recalled to England and eventually faced an official inquiry, which resulted in his dismissal from the Army. Nonetheless, he was greeted almost everywhere in England as a national hero. And so, too, was the man who had sent him to Amritsar, Lieutenant-Governor Michael O'Dwyer. Although Dyer came to feel shame over the event, O'Dwyer would have none of it. Knighted for his service, he went on the speaking circuit to praise the Army's action and warn against catastrophe in India. He even wrote and published a popular book that justified the action. He was one of the most popular men in England in the 1920s and 30s.

Meanwhile, a young Punjabi man from a town near Amritsar was seething with fury. He had lost close friends in the massacre and swore revenge. An orphan who struggled with poverty for years on end, he gradually drifted into radical circles organized by local anti-British activists and by the Comintern. Passionately committed to killing Dyer and O'Dwyer, he drifted around the world—to England, the United States, Western Europe, and Russia—to learn how to become an assassin, and acquire the weapons he would need. And he persisted for more than twenty years. In the meantime, Dyer had long since died. But he succeeded in shooting and killing O'Dwyer at a public lecture in 1940. The man had used many names in his lifetime, but when we was hanged in July 1940, he was identified as Udham Singh, the name he had been given in the orphanage.

Later, so did the man who murdered the official responsible for the Amritsar Massacre

Singh became a national hero in India. In 1974, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi brought his bones home and reburied him with honors. Today, Singh's statue stands vigil at the Jallianwala Bagh.

Anita Anand's account of the lives lived by Dyer, O'Dwyer, and Singh during the two decades following the massacre is compelling. She has done a brilliant job of research, digging out century-old records and recently declassified material, and she writes well. The Patient Assassin is an important addition to our understanding of how India gained its independence. After all, Singh's assassination of O'Dwyer took place just seven years before the British finally granted the nation it's freedom.

[Katedurie50 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew a little about the Amritsar massacre but found this extended my understanding exponentially. Post-colonial history has to be seen from the perspective of the colonised and marginalised, and this story of rage and revenge makes so many connections, not just with Indian independence movemnets but Russia and Nazi Germany. What I particularly like is that the book doesn't play heroes and villains. Udham Singh is often far from noble; Sir Michael O'Dwyer is a Catholic from Ireland who has risen but carried with him a fear and loathing of nationalist politics. Rex Dyer, who ordered the troops to fire, was haunted by the sense that many thought, even in Biitain, he had committed a terrible, inexcusable wrong. And behind it all there's the shadow of the 1857 Mutiny; the British were terrified it could happen again.
The story is well told, easy to read, but does justice to the complexity of all this.

[Chris Wray · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919 is infamous in India and was described as monstrous at the time by Winston Churchill. The British Empire has at times been regarded as a benign and almost paternal influence over its subject peoples, but this book by Anita Anand points to an alternative perspective: empires are about the accumulation and retention of power and wealth, and the British Empire like any other would quickly resort to violence when it perceived itself to be threatened. While Britain's imperial legacy (indeed, that of all empires) is nuanced and contains much that is good as well as much that is shameful and bad, this book documents a vivid example of the latter.

Anand also comments that she found herself "left with a surprisingly contemporary story...Udham's is a story of dispossession and radicalisation, of 'Russian interference' and a realigning of world powers. It speaks of failures in the seemingly infallible security services. It is also the story of buried facts and 'fake news'." While the book is written from the Indian perspective, Anita Anand does a really good job of humanising her two main antagonists, Brigadier Reginald Dyer and Sir Michael O'Dwyer (particularly the former).

Unfortunately, the book's central character, Udham Singh, remains an enigma. Was he a self-radicalised fantasist, or a dedicated and focused revolutionary terrorist? How did he fund his globetrotting lifestyle in the 1930s? Much of the detail of these events will inevitably remain foggy, and the evidence is very thin in parts, but this lack of clarity is in fact the book's main weakness. Udham was certainly what we in Ireland would call 'a chancer' - charming and lying his way through life with a complete disregard for anyone else. There are other parallels with Ireland, some of which are pointed out by Anand in her narrative. It is striking that the events described are contemporaneous with Ireland's revolutionary struggle for independence, and that the massacre in Jallianwala Bagh was compared at the time to Bloody Sunday in Dublin in 1920.

Ultimately, this is a fascinating and often bizarre human interest story, and one that shines a light on an unsavoury aspect of Britain's imperial past:

"Let it be remembered that these operations were conducted not against a city or villages in a hostile territory of a country with which Great Britain was at war; they were not reprisals for similar acts against ourselves. They were inflicted on an unarmed civilian population of a province, whose loyalty and sterling assistance of the Empire in the war was Sir Michael O'Dwyer's constant boast, when it suited him to 'boost' his own achievements as a Lieutenant Governor." Cruelty and evil are so often banal, and it's important to remember that O'Dwyer was ordinary - a civil servant - and that his actions were largely prompted by motivations we can all identify with: ambition, selfishness, malice, pride, ill-temper. It also highlights the absolute cancer that racism is to human interaction, and how irrational and ultimately ridiculous it is. I'm firmly of the belief that we can't allow ourselves to be imprisoned by the past and ultimately need to move on from events like Jallianwala Bagh, but doing so requires that these things are acknowledged and understood as far as possible. Anita Anand's book is a valuable contribution to that, and is worthy of your time.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review to come.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

2019 is the centenary of the Jallianwallah Bagh Massacre, one of Britain's most heinous crimes against their empire, and sadly one of which the vast majority of Brits are largely unaware. Anita Anand has taken the anniversary as a great opportunity to tell the tale of one man, Udham Singh, allegedly a survivor of the massacre (though it's not 100% proven) and his 21-year plan to kill the men behind the killings. Brigadier General Reginald Dyer was the man who ordered the shots that killed hundreds of men, women and children, whilst Lieutenant Governor Sir Michael O'Dwyer supported and encouraged the killing and spent many years trying to position Dyer (and himself) as national heroes who together prevented another Indian mutiny.

Anand has created a really solid book, thoroughly researched without being too 'heavy' or intellectually worthy. As I was reading I could imagine the book converted into a fantastic film - though I somehow doubt that anybody would be brave enough to take it on. She offers a balanced picture of the three men involved, amazingly managing to make me feel just a little bit sorry for Dyer; something I never would have thought possible. Singh's adventures and misadventures, his international travels and undercover shenanigans, name changes, conniving and plotting are absolutely fascinating. Even Michael O'Dwyer (who I personally think got what he deserved but 20 years later than he deserved it) is presented as a more layered and complex character than I expected.

There are fascinating bits in this. I might have known that Udham Singh spent time in prison with Bhagat Singh, the atheist revolutionary and considered him a friend and an inspiration. I also loved learning that he was a good friend to the family of Indarjit Singh (familar to Radio 4 listeners for his 'Thought for the Day' sessions) and played with Lord Singh and his brother whenever he visited their parents. Lord Singh is now 86 years old, but there's something special about biographies of people who were known by people still alive today.

This book isn't for everybody. I hope it will go down well with Indian readers but I suspect that outside India, you need to be a bit of a passionate reader of books on pre-Independence Indian history to get the most out of it.

I borrowed this from my local library's ebook scheme but will definitely try to get my own copy as it's such a great book and one I'll want to dip into again.

[Aparna Verma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for further research and… yeah, THE BOY WITH FIRE book 2 is gonna hurt like a motherfucker.

[Godowd · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was really looking forward to this but not very well put together. You cannot really tell this story without talking about the test of the crumbling empire. Compare the massacre to the bloody sunday massacre ( mentioned but similarities not really explored) , starvation and confiscation of land from populations across the empire was standard (Ireland Kenya...)

The main character comes across as a opportunist who spins a good story. The author reinforces this view when he points out he may not have even been at the massacre! He then by getting involved with various movements spends his way across the world .. with no real convincing evidence he was ever going to carry out the assassination till he runs out of money, is on the run again and decides to do something to make a name for himself.

The book ends pretty tamely with the author questioning how mi5 could not spot Singh on their radar..( they might just have been fighting a war ) and ODwyer on his 70's was hardly the PM. The treatment at his trial was pretty standard for the time.

This book could have been so much better.. will now be just a reference for a more comprehensive book.

[Timothy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The underlying story is a remarkable take of determination, revenge and achievement. Unfortunately the narrative is full of supposition and inference which wears thin after a while. There is too much extraneous information which the author uses to pad out an otherwise thin book. To some extent this is understandable as the protagonist did his best to cover his tracks, some information is still unavailable and some records will have been lost. However, more wearisome is the constant insertion of Indian words for things which then needs explanation or translation.

[Julian Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written more like a novel, this is an incredible tale of a slice of history about which I have to admit I knew next to nothing.

Weaving together the lives of those involved in this tale of horror, rejection, revenge and adoration, all sides of the incident are examined and an incredible picture is painted.

Eye opening, stimulating, shaming and uplifting all in one.

A cracking story, brilliantly told.

[Colin Falconer · Rating 5 out of 5]

History that reads like a thriller. One man 's quest to exact revenge on behalf of an entire nation. Hard to put down.

[Aisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular read. Richly decorated with well researched parts, the book retells the story of Sardar Udham Singh, a man who was so impacted by the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, that he avenged the deaths of his fellow countrymen 20 years later.

The book is a nonfiction but reads like a racy thriller. The author keeps the tension high, supplements the text with references to stay true to the events and explains the political climate and the personal saga of the countries and people that feature in this book.

For the lovers of history, politics and human stories, this book is a treat.

[Audrey Lynch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very quick read. I have never read anything factual about India before as I have always thought that it would be horrific. Well I was right.
What the British did to this country is mind blowing. I know we are talking about a different time but man never ceases to amaze me with the cruelties it dishes out on their fellow man.
I think that this book will be the introduction to read other non fictional books about India.
About the book the thing that stuck me was how the author was able to trace Udham's whereabouts. The record keeping was not complete but she was able to piece together his story from many different locations. The man was not able to rest until he had sought retribution and it took him 21 years to achieve his goal.
It was an easy book to follow as everyone seemed to have Singh as their surname....
I only gave it 3 stars as I felt that we are dealing with facts. I'm too used to the sentimentality of fiction I know my fault....

[Jamie Horan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story of Udham Singh and his actions in response to the Jallianbagh Massacre are very interesting. However this book was not very well written. Between the 1919 massacre and the assassination, the book is light on specific details and very heavy on supposition. At times the author makes up stories to dramatise things (the story of Udham shaving before he went to shoot O’Dwyer was utter madness)

Also the author needs to make up her mind about O’Dwyer - either he is a villain who warrants such sentences as ‘somewhat blind to the accomplishments of Indians, would always seek out and admire his own kind’ or he is the man whose relationship with his dog warrants almost a page. I thought that too much time was spent trying to personalise him and then later on, to vilify him.

[Pooja Peravali · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Indian freedom fighter waited more than two decades to exact revenge for the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre which was ordered by the British Raj - but the story is more complicated and less cinematic than it has been often depicted since.

At the start of this book, the author notes that as the descendent of Indians, she had to set aside her natural aversion to the British Raj and admiration for Udham Singh to tell the story in as unbiased a way as she could. I often felt similarly while reading this book. India did not gain its independence until 1947. My paternal grandfather told me once that he remembers as a child watching the British soldiers march through his rural village during the mass exodus after independence was granted. The effect that the colonization had on the country - the greatest of which may be the deep discord sown between the different religions - are palpable today.

And at the same time, I am also quite familiar with the Indian penchant for creating larger-than-life legends out of its heroes - the cinematic plastering over the cracks in real stories to make symbols out of people (and of course there are quite a few movies about the massacre and Udham Singh's story - at least as it's commonly told). I appreciated that the author made the effort to unpack who Udham really was - a flawed, sometimes vain figure who chose violence as his avenue to make a statement for Indian independence and for his own personal legacy at the same time.

This book is also an excellent introduction for unfamiliar to the effects of the British Raj on India, and the long-winding road toward independence, which reached many more shores than one might have expect. It's a snapshot of a certain aspect of the story, one serves in many ways as a microcosm of the entire story. And though I'll certainly never feel sympathetic to the likes of Sir Michael O'Dwyer, who ordered the massacre, this book did at least make me think more about how he came to be where he was, and decide what he chose to do as well.

[Sahitya · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was not a book I knew about at all until a couple of days ago. The only reason seeing the book recommended by a beloved author Aparna Verma convinced me to pick it up was because the movie about the main historical figure in this story, Sardar Udham released just last week and I found it a very interesting watch. Naturally, I was very curious to know more about the history of the time and was glad to find the audiobook and proceeded to listen to it in a single sitting.

The first thing I have to mention is that the author narrates the audiobook herself and it is very well done and effective. I only later got to know that she is a BBC radio and television presenter, and that experience definitely enhances the quality with which she tells the story. The writing ofcourse helps because it is very deeply emotionally engaging and evocative - especially the events leading up to and the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre are very very heartbreaking to read about but also extremely rage inducing. It’s not that I didn’t know this event happened - all of us have studied this in our Indian school history books - but it’s the callousness and utter absence of any regret or repentance that enraged me, told in the perpetrator’s own words. Along with the emotional weight of this story, this book is also very thrilling to read because the author has written it like a spy/investigative novel. I thought this was a perfect example of how well narrative nonfiction can educate us on history while also keeping us as engaged as any well written fantasy or thriller novel.

The book is very much not an exhaustive history of the British Raj but we do get a good enough look at how the empire looked down at the Indian people. Despite knowing atleast some part of history, it’s still very difficult to read about how the British destroyed the mainly agriculture based Indian economy, forcibly taking away everyone’s lands and making the people destitute; and when they protested, was shocked to see that the lowly Indians weren’t happy being subjugated and living as second class citizens in their own country. The personal writings of Michael O’Dwyer and many others of the time clearly showed how much they disdained Indians and would love to just kill whomever they considered disobedient, instead of going through the pesky justice system. The author does try to paint a more fuller picture of O’Dwyer and General Dyer’s personalities, showing them as loving and loyal family men, but it’s hard for me to sympathize with them because even if Jallianwala Bagh was only one event in their life, that is what defines them for me.

But it’s Sardar Udham who is a much more fascinating figure in this book. The movie which I saw does give a brief glimpse into him, but this book goes much deeper into everything that he did in his life which led to his final act of assassination. He is a very charming man who is very good at making friends and convincing people of his cause, which becomes even more important once the massacre completely changes his life, putting him on a revenge course. His story feels like an endless journey which he undertakes because he doesn’t know where to stop. At the same time, he also came across as manipulative and self-centered, ready to use and abandon anyone as long as it served his cause. I thought this was a very nuanced portrayal of a man who was irrevocably changed by the horrors he witnessed as well as the various atrocities he experienced, who was so set on his goal of revenge that he probably never took any opportunity to find happiness for himself. While it wasn’t always easy to like him as a person, and it feels bad to justify murder, I could never find any fault in his desire to kill the people who were responsible for the massacre in Amritsar.

While I do love reading books featuring historical events, most of my reading in the genre have been limited to American history for the past many years, so I found it very heartening to back to a story about India’s history and a person who’s relentless pursuit of vengeance must have brought some sort of peace to the countless people who lived through those horrific times. I would definitely recommend this book to any history nerds, but also to readers who might not gravitate towards the genre because this is written like an amazing fiction novel and I’m sure you’ll find it a great read. And I would highly recommend the audiobook too because I enjoyed it thoroughly, but non-desi folks might find the numerous names a bit confusing while listening.

[Vimal Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could have rated more than 5 stars for this amazing details. I kept me glued with the title throughout and finally left with tear to tickle down.

Hats off to the author who unveiled the story, layer by layer, which remained little mysterious.

Hope, the immortal soul, shining in sky as twinkling star, may be watching us and must be proud of his sacrifice of highest order.

And to tormentor at Jaliyawala Bagh massacre and it's proponents-- may they blessed with wisdom who were not had mere sense of humanity despite being human.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

On April 13, 1919 in Amritsar (located in a province of Punjab India) the Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place. I had never heard of this, and I wonder how many non-Indian people have. This was one of the most odious actions I have ever read about.

The story tells the events leading up to the massacre. Diving into British entry in India, the Raj they became, the control they held over the Indian people. It tells the story from all perspectives, with stellar research on all of the main characters. The tale spans more than 20 years as Udham Singh stews over the slaughter of his people as he plans his revenge.

The story of Udham Singh begins with his execution for the assassination of Sir Michael O'Dwyer. It then goes back in time to reveal the events that lead to Singh's arrest. Anita Anand gives equal, non-judgmental page time to both men, and also to all the other main players.

I learned so much about the cultural divide that existed in India at this time. So many of the deplorable actions of the British went unpunished. It makes you wonder, it makes you sick to your stomach.

I deducted 1/2 star because at times I got bored with all the detail, but that's just me-always wanting the meat of the story "right now". I will however look for more written by this author. The story is told as more of a "thriller" not a dry documentary.

I recommend this to anyone who loves historical non-fiction, who wants to know more about why "The Sun Never Set On The British Empire".

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Patient Assassin, what a pleasure you have been. Crept your way into my top 5 books of all time with an emotional, brutal and harrowing read.

Being British, I felt disgusted, ashamed and embarrassed for the actions of the British Empire. We (British) do not get taught anything of these sorts. I know what some of you are thinking 'It was a long time ago, blah blah blah' and I get it. But, 100 years isn't actually that long ago when considering the scars left by the British Empire are still felt today.

This book gives the reader everything they could ask for; assassinations, massacres, revenge, abuse of power and lots more. The worst part? It's all true. I'm rather surprised this book doesn't seem that popular. It resonates with 'In Cold Blood by Truman Capote' so if you like that you'll LOVE 'The Patient Assassin'.

Anita Anand allows the readers an extraordinary glimpse into history with a story which must be heard by all.

Read this book.

[Radhika Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What. A. Book. It's been ages since I've read a non-fiction novel that reads like a thriller. Anita Anand has done a marvelous job, not only with her research but with her writing as well.

I doubt the life of Udham Singh needs any introduction. But, to encapsulate it as briefly as I can, Singh is a revolutionary who was hanged for his assassination of Sir Michael O'Dwyer, former Lieutenant General of Punjab. He was also the infamous architect of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

Writing about an individual, the perception of whose deeds remain contentious and mainly depends upon whether you're an Indian or British, is bound to be a difficult task. Anand has done complete justice to it. She has written purely from the perspective of a researcher, though I feel the ending of it all has been coloured by her own emotions as well as her own family's history.

Without going into the depth of it all, what I enjoyed about the book was the plethora of information and context provided by Anand without the same overpowering the main narrative or making it seem cluttered. It was an utter page-turner that was written as lucidly as it could get. I think the only thing that put me off was how Anand superimposed her own thoughts into the gaps left in the research. It became quite fictional in the end, with a lot of "maybe this had happened" or "maybe this was what was going on in his head". That did manage to take away from the legitimacy of it all and made the real life story come out to be slightly improbable.

Despite that, I recommend this book wholeheartedly. If you're a lover of all things history, this will be an absolute treat for you.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a piece of imperialist history that I have not heard about. I also complemented this book with a short biography about the events that took place at the Jallianwallah Bagh in Amritsar in 1919.

The author describes the event and the motivation of one man, Udham Singh, to seek revenge. Ghandi is also highlighted in this account and he is someone who I would like to learn even more about.

This event was the beginning of the end of the British occupation, but it was such an extremely tragic and malicious event that it is marked by monuments in Amritsar and remembered to this day.

It is an event to never forget how the people of India were treated like second class citizens in their own country and denied access to basic human rights. It is also a reminder of the abuse of power wielded by governments that echoes in many countries to this very day.

***I read via the audiobook as narrated by the author. She did an excellent job. 👌

[Mairo Dilworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Huge amount of research to uncover this story which resonates through India and Great Britain during the first half of the 20th century and the end of the Raj. Very interesting.

[Saksham Srivastava · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shoutout to Non-fiction books that read like Thrillers. Gotta be one of my favourite genders.

[Conor Fitzpatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was an insane story, type shi mfs come up with, long live king udham singh

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

RTC

[Peejay Parmar · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been 20 minutes since I had finished reading Anita Anand's The Patient Assassin and the one word I could use to describe it is " WOW." I started it a few days ago and I was hooked, the book is so good! From the cover itself I didn't know the book was a semi autobiographical take on Udham Singh's life. The legend of Udham Singh is no stranger to South Asians, especially Punjabis of Northern India. His story has been adapted to many different films, television dramas and is the subject of many famous Punjabi songs and ballads. Personally, my first experience with his story started with a clip from a movie I saw on television when I was a kid, coincidentally titled " The Legend of Udham Singh." Bollywood Actor Raj Babbar portrayed him in the movie and the clip that has been burnt into my memory is of him shooting Michael O' Dwyer in the chest with a loaded gun. Years later I heard more of the tale from my friends and family members. I think some kid in my grade seven class did a project on him but I skipped class that day so never really got to hear it. Whenever I heard his name though that clip of him walking upto his target and shooting him in the chest always popped up. He is regarded as a national hero to India and even more to Punjabis around the world for avenging all the people killed at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar in 1919.

Anita's book was an interesting read because right in the beginning she talks about her
research experience and also reveals to the reader that her grand father had a terrible case of survivor guilt because he ended up leaving Jallianwala Bagh before the massacre took place. The book takes the reader back in time to when India was part of the British empire and how the people of India were poorly treated by their British overlords. I remember hearing how bad it was from older family members and seeing it in some films and television programs but actually reading about how inhumane they treated their subjects ( the people of India) is really upsetting. Not only did they callously murdered innocent people because they believed they were part of some rebel alliance or more hauntingly, they were just making a statement but the British empire actually put forth legislation making humiliating's things such punishing a brown skinned person for not saluting a white person legal. These punishments included public flogging and in most cases jail.

I also loved how much detail Anita got in her descriptions and actually illustrated a background to why a person like Udham Singh would do all the things he did to enact vengeance upon his oppressor. It also didn't feel like I was reading a history book when she was glossing over the intricate details of pre independence India. She also brought in other prominent freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh into her story who greatly inspired the protagonist in his quest for vengeance.

The author does a great job with all the research she had conducted to actually create a human character of Udham Singh. A lot of people have attribute divine like qualities to him in recent memory so I'm glad she humanizes him more. Anita doesn't paint him as this perfect person. He was a man who had numerous affairs, he was a man who was a pathological liar and would exaggerate things in order to get his way, he was a man who couldn't hold on to relationships with friends or family members possibly due to his own abandonment issues. In conclusion, Udham Singh was a man who became an avenging angel of death the moment Michael O Dwyver and General Dyer committed the atrocities that had occurred in Amritsar that faithful day in March of 1919.


The reason I gave this book four starts and not a perfect five is there were times when she would introduce certain prominent figures randomly and I felt it would deter from the story or flow of things.

Overall, the book was a great read and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone that wants to learn more about British occupied India or Udham Singh. It was a fun and informative read.