The Last Guest: A Misty Heights Mystery

By Madhankumar Murugan

A mountain retreat. Six guests. No way out.

When washed-up crime journalist Arjun Rao receives a cryptic invitation to a private literary retreat at the fog-shrouded Misty Heights Resort in the Nilgiri Hills, he knows it is a trap. But the host - billionaire media mogul Vikram Khanna - claims to have information about the murder Arjun could never prove: the death of his source, Deepak Kumar, ruled suicide three years ago. Arjun cannot resist.

Six guests arrive at the remote colonial-era estate perched on a clifftop above the clouds. A violent storm seals the mountain road and destroys all communication. Then Vikram is found dead in the locked library - a glass of single malt by his chair, the grandfather clock stopped at 11:47 PM, and every person in the house holding a secret dark enough to kill for.

With no police, no signal, and a killer moving freely among them, Arjun must resurrect the investigative skills he buried with his journalism career. But the deeper he digs, the more the lines blur - between victim and villain, motive and frame-up, justice and revenge.

The truth, when it finally emerges from the mountain fog, reaches far beyond this one locked room. It stretches back three years, to a government conspiracy, a stolen scientific legacy, and a dead man on a city flyover who deserved better from the journalist who should have saved him.

Following the classic 12-step murder mystery formula - from the perfect crime to the midpoint twist to the shattering two-killer climax - The Last Guest is a tautly plotted, psychologically rich dark thriller that combines the atmospheric elegance of Agatha Christie with the gritty moral complexity of modern Indian crime fiction.

Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Vikram Chandra, and P.D. James.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GXTJD1K4
• ISBN13: 9798258007711
• Release Date: April 2026
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 218 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"