New Delhi, Oct. 2 -- Amit Chaudhuri's new novel is set in Paris, not in the part of the city that is dotted with grand old monuments and historic sites of cultural pilgrimage, but in the less salubrious Chateau Rouge area, which lends the book its title. The narrator is a writer, a close approximation of Chaudhuri, who is in Paris on a fellowship to write a book on Indian classical music. He rents a flat on Chateau Rouge, far from the elegant heart of Paris, constrained by his budget, and his first glimpse of the neighbourhood doesn't augur well.

Even before he steps foot in the area, his suspicions are aroused. When Holly, "in charge of the incoming fellows", uses the word "vibrant" to describe the ambience of the place, he says, "it ma...