Bromfield: The Rains Came

[Tony Vella]

I am re-reading Bromfield's The Rain Came and the same old question comes to mind whenever I meet with some particular detail; i.e. on what town is Ranchipur based? When I talk of particular detail I mean things like "about a mile or two beyond the racecourse" or "Queen Victoria's statue on the center span of the bridge". Bromfield also writes in detail about "the old, abondoned, wooden palace where the Maharajah used to live until his new one was built". Too much detail for simple imagination in my humble opinion. I really would like to know if my suspicions are correct and that Ranchipur was indeed based on a real town that Bromfield visited in the early 30s. Thanks in advance.

[Craigable]

Tony (if you're still around) --

I used to work at a college that employed a Bromfield scholar. She'd be plenty happy to hear you enjoy Bromfield's work. And, just as an FYI, she'd most probably recommend that you read his novel "The Strange Case of Miss Annie Spragg."

I did a little digging and believe that Cooch Behar is the place Bromfield used as inspiration for the setting of the novel.

Craig