"Asoka's alibi" by Talbot Mundy is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set in a turbulent Indian border state, it follows Ben Quorn, an American elephant master whose bond with the colossal Asoka pulls him into palace intrigue, religious power plays, and a duel of wits with the sinister assassin Maraj. Around him orbit the reformist young Ranee, the upright British Resident Blake, the proud Rajput prince Rana Raj Singh, and the opportunistic babu Bamjee. It’s a fast-paced adventure of spectacle, politics, and peril.The opening of the story plunges into Narada’s carnival frenzy as Quorn stages crowd-pleasing feats with Asoka while the Ranee’s modernization angers temple Brahmins. A snake-fakir provokes Asoka, is trampled in the chaos, and Quorn bolts to hide the elephant as rumors swirl that the victim was Maraj. Bamjee slips through the city to warn the Ranee, leading to a rooftop council with Blake and Rana Raj Singh; the Ranee deputizes Quorn to hunt Maraj and counter the Brahmins. Quorn is then abducted by Maraj, witnesses a chilling Thuggee-style killing, bluffs his way free, and is rescued by Blake. Meanwhile Bamjee probes the temple, narrowly escapes after blood is shed, and Blake finds a note linking the Brahmins to Maraj and ordering Quorn’s death. As Rana Raj Singh readies silent riders to back Quorn’s plan to bait the enemy, Maraj brazenly appears at the Residency, taunting them and setting the conflict in motion. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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