Cheryl R. (Spuddie) - , reviewed on 3/16/2011 + 412 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

#2 in the Detective David "Kubu" Bengu series set in Botswana. This book has Kubu venturing far from home in Gaborone to the north of Botswana to a tourist camp in the jungle where two brutal murders beg to be solved. One of the men killed turns out to be a South African policeman. The other, Goodluck Tinubu, appears to be not what he seems--which was a quiet, well-loved teacher from a school in Mochudi. According to his fingerprints, he had already died once in the Rhodesian war thirty years previously.

Since his body was mutilated after death in a way that indicates it was a gang killing related to the political upheavals in Zimbabwe, and since another man staying at the camp left sooner than planned and has now disappeared, it is assumed that he is the killer they're looking for. But as Kubu and Tatwa, the local detective in charge, begin investigating, they discover that some of the camp's other guests are not exactly who they seem to be either, and some have dark secrets of their own.

A twisty tale of political unrest, smuggling, and old festering wounds, this book reads much more quickly than its 480 pages would have you think. Great characters, a lot of information--not all of it pleasant, with the history of these African countries--and immersion into the culture without being 'teachy or preachy.' Good mystery too, although I had a gut feeling about the killer. Hope there will be more in the series!

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