This new twist on a country house mystery, should really be called "The Night of Hurricane Harvey," but that might be too long. THE NIGHT OF THE STORM follows an Indian American family including a grandmother and two children, as they live through a horrendous time.

With Hurricane Harvey bearing down on Texas, mom Jia Shah is trying to buy water bottles for her twelve-year-old son, Ishaan, when the evacuation order is broadcast. As she has divorced and custody is a continual issue, Jia is reluctant to leave their apartment, but the storm predictions are dire. She accepts an offer to stay with her sister, Seema, and her husband, Vipul Joshi. They have a large house in Sugar Land, where Vipul is convinced – perhaps wrongly – that they can ride out the floods and winds. Ishaan is keen to go. His Grandma is also there; and Vipul’s brother Raj and his wife Lisa, a younger American girl, whom Grandma loves for her blonde hair, soon arrive.

Jia has to keep her ex-husband Dev in mind. He’s miles away, safe, but she starts getting odd texts from him which suggests he’s nearer. Ishaan admires his dad but has been getting in trouble at school. Most of Jia’s thoughts are about her family and work issues, but then a somewhat creepy neighbour of Seema’s turns up saying he needs shelter. Throw in the fact that Vipul had previously been making personal overtures to Jia, who doesn’t want to tell her sister and endanger their relationship, and the tensions are running as high as the floodwaters.

I love how we keep getting updates, power cuts and visible storm damage, creating a claustrophobic effect as the family are trapped in the million-dollar home. Simultaneously, the atmosphere fractures and chills when a sudden death occurs. This would be dramatic enough in any household, but the culture clash adds great depth and interest. Women like Lisa, eager to please in her newly adopted culture, can be derided by those who have made pakoras and worn saris since childhood. The men are self-confident to a fault, each in their own way. And Jia, for divorcing, is considered a disgrace, tolerated perhaps only for her son’s sake.

Nishita Parekh is a software programmer originally from Mumbai, who came to America in her teens and is now living in Texas. THE NIGHT OF THE STORM is a spectacular first novel, which I didn’t want to stop reading until I’d finished. This brave crime story will provide many talking points, shedding light on a successful but flawed community.