A carrion death: introducing detective kubu - michael stanley

In A Carrion Death, a memorable new detective makes his debut in a gritty and evocative new series set amid the beauty and darkness of contemporary Africa.

[An] impressive debut.

The intricate plotting, a grisly sense of realism and numerous topical motifs .

make this a compulsively readable novel.

-- Publishers Weekly A Carrion Death offers a gritty, authentic look at modern-day Africa teeming with poachers, deadly diamond dealers and the aftermath of apartheid.

They found the first body--what the hyena didnt ravage, that is--near a waterhole considered magical by the local people.

A string of clues suggests that the victim was murdered and his identity hidden, a mysterious crime tailor-made for Assistant Superintendent David Bengu, nicknamed Kubu (hippopotamus in Setswana) for his ability to trample whatever lies in the path of his objective.

Detective Kubu, a clever and resourceful lawman, is determined to rid Botswana of crime and corruption, even if his discoveries following a blood-soaked trail marked by lies and superstition leads him to the most powerful figures in the country: people who would make powerful, dangerous enemies.

A Carrion Death juxtaposes familiar themes of wilderness, superstition, tribal culture and colonialism with the new understandings of Africas big business and modernity.

It is an unforgettable debut.