A A Dhand
British crime-writer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A A Dhand (Amit Dhand) is a British crime-writer. His recent books are set in the West Yorkshire city of Bradford,[1] a former industrial city very much a shadow of its former self and rife with social deprivation, crime and complex inter-communal challenges.[2][3]
A A Dhand | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Author |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | Fulneck School, West Yorkshire |
| Genre | Crime fiction |
| Notable works | Harry Virdee series |
Early life and education
Born in April 1979 and raised in Bradford from age two, the son of an immigrant corner shop owner,[4] Dhand was educated at Fulneck School, a boarding and day private school in the market town of Pudsey (near Leeds) in West Yorkshire. The School features in his novels. He graduated in 2002 with a Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) from the University of Bradford.[5]
Life and career
Dhand worked as a pharmacist in London before returning to his hometown to start a pharmacy business and write books.[6]
He is now a regular contributor to a number of British Asian and crime writers' forums.[7]
Writing
Dhand's first novel featured a character Ranjit Singh and is set against the Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947; but it has been his more recent novels that have won him critical acclaim. These have featured the Bradford-based police detective Harry Virdee, a progressive British Sikh who struggles with his cultural identity and family loyalties. Race, violence and exploitation are on the agenda in the Virdee novels, and Dhand has not shied away from controversial issues of tension between British Asian communities. Dhand is fairly unique as he sets his protagonists (who are shaped by Asian culture) in a British setting.[8]
His novel Streets of Darkness was developed as a TV drama.[9] In August 2023, the BBC announced that the Harry Virdee books would be adapted into a six episode series entitled Virdee, with Staz Nair starring in the title role.[10] The series was released in February 2025, following a Red Carpet event in Bradford, attended by Dhand, Nair, Aysha Kala (who plays Virdee's wife, Saima), Vikash Bhai (who plays Virdee’s drug kingpin brother-in-law) and Danyal Ismeal (who plays Virdee's novice colleague).[11]
In April 2024, it was announced that Dhand had moved from Transworld to HarperCollins' imprint HQ, as part of a two-book deal. The books will be about a new character, Idris Kalia, a Leeds pharmacist involved in a turf war.[12] In early 2026, HarperCollins released details of the second book in the series, to be called The Kingpin.[13]
Bibliography
| Hardback | Paperback | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Publisher | Date | ISBN | Publisher | Date | ISBN (p/b) | Series | Notes |
| Fields of Blood | N/a | Ranjit Singh | Written in 2012-13. Although a winning entry in a crime-writing competition,[14] there is no indication that this was ever published. | |||||
| Streets of Darkness | Bantam Press | 16 June 2016 | ISBN 9780593076644 | Corgi Books | 23 February 2017 | ISBN 9780552172783 | D.I. Harry Virdee | |
| Girl Zero | Bantam Press | 13 July 2017 | ISBN 9780593076668 | Corgi Books | 22 February 2918 | ISBN 9780552172790 | D.I. Harry Virdee[15] | |
| City of Sinners | Bantam Press | 28 June 2018 | ISBN 978-0593080498 | Corgi Books | 21 March 2019 | ISBN 9780552175555 | D.I. Harry Virdee | Republished on 6 February 2025 with the title Virdee as a tie-in to the television series with a photograph of Staz Nair as DCI Harry Virdee on the cover[16] |
| One Way Out | Bantam Press | 27 June 2019 | ISBN 9781787631755 | Corgi Books | 19 March 2020 | ISBN 9780552176538 | D.I. Harry Virdee[17] | |
| Darkness Rising | N/a | Corgi Books | 20 February 2020 | ISBN 9780552177092 | D.I. Harry Virdee | This is a Quick Reads Initiative book[18] | ||
| Blood Divide | Bantam Press | 24 June 2021 | ISBN 9781787631762) | Penguin Books | 14 May 2022 | ISBN 9780552176545 | Jack Baxi[19] | |
| The Chemist | HQ Books | 22 May 2025 | ISBN 9780008645854 | HQ Books | 22 May 2025 | ISBN 9780008645847 | Idris Kalia[12] | It was published in hardback and in paperback on the same day. |
| The Kingpin | HQ Books | 2 July 2026[20] | ISBN 9780008645908 | HQ Books | 2 July 2026[21] | ISBN 9780008645892[21] | Idris Kalia[13] | The announced publication date is the same for both the hardback and the paperback editions. |