Rarely has a choice been announced to such a glum response. Was it the jacket – a photographic, quasi-Bollywood confection? Or the title, apeing the self-help manuals that clutter pop psychology shelves and the non-fiction sections of airport newsagents? It didn’t sell as well as previous announcements either. Even group stalwart, Charles, who has travelled and lived extensively in Asia groaned.

But, we needn’t have worried. It turned out to be one of our most popular choices ever and the group quickly got down to discovering just why over a batch of hot samosas, Gujarati mix and Tiger beer, with some evocative Pakistani tunes courtesy of Charles himself. An excellent meeting ensued. We pretty much all agreed that if you like your literature fast, unadorned with pretension but spiced with just enough sex, politics and corruption to keep you turning the pages, this is the self-help novel for you. It helps that the characters, though mainly ghastly, were sympathetic, even likeable, in an evolving landscape of dust, sweat and double-cross.