The Sly Company of People Who Care tells the story of a twenty-six-year-old Indian journalist who decides to give up his job and travel to Guyana, a forgotten colonial society of raw, mesmerizing beauty. 

There he is not just seduced by the country: he is also captivated by the feisty yet fragile Jan, and together they embark on an adventure which will take them into a new country and change both their lives.

In his dazzling and ambitious debut novel, Rahul Bhattacharya has captured the heady adventures of travel, the overheated restlessness of youth, and the paradoxes of searching for life’s meaning in the escape from home.

‘His descriptions are ravishing . . . We look forward to seeing this on (at least) the Booker longlist.’ The Times

‘Clever, insightful and funny. With a style resonant of some of the best Asian writing by giants such as Naipaul and Rushdie . . . this debut novel has powerful charm.’ Daily Mail

‘It is beautifully written and brims with charm . . . Definitely a book to be savoured lying in a shady hammock, with a bottle of rum and cricket on the radio.’ Financial Times