When a Botswana mine is robbed of 100,000 carats of diamonds and the thieves are murdered execution-style, Botswana’s Detective Kubu begins a terrifying international investigation in the prequel to the award-winning Detective Kubu series.
Recruited straight from university to Botswana’s CID, David ‘Kubu’ Bengu has raised his colleagues’ suspicions with his meteoric rise within the department, and he has a lot to prove…
When the richest diamond mine in the world is robbed of 100,000 carats worth of gems, and then the thieves are killed, execution-style, Kubu leaps at the chance to prove himself. But where are the diamonds? And what role does a witch doctor and his son play? Does this young detective have the skill – and integrity – to engineer an international trap? Or could it cost him everything, including his life…?
I am completely ashamed to say that Facets of Death was my first experience of Botswana with Detective David ‘Kubu’ Bengu, but it will not be my last, I very quickly purchased a few in the series.
Facets of Death is a prequel to the series that delves into Kubu’s first professional placement after leaving university, at Botswana’s criminal investigation department. Being the newest recruit Kubu experiences people being very aware of him, waiting for him to prove that he is deserving of a place
on the team.
I really enjoyed my first meeting with our protagonist, I felt that he had the capacity to investigate but lacked a sense of confidence in himself to do so but as the storyline begun to develop, we also see Kubu becoming more aware of his ability to investigate.
Kubu almost instantly finds himself swallowed by a case that moves over several continents, with suitcases missing in Europe, diamonds stolen and the death toll mounting in Botswana, South Africa, he must connect the threads while seeking out those responsible. As he begins to brush away the surface, the events are sewn deeper into the core of the novel than initially expected.
This crimethriller is set with a backdrop of Botswana with an inclusion of cultural aspects, such as mythological
aspects, witch doctors and the overall culture twisted around a suspenseful crime. Using his training and genius tactics, Kubu must race against time to catch the culprits and I guarantee you will be captivated by the chilling, snappy chapters and the atmospherically exquisite writing that allows the reader to travel to Botswana and feel a part of the investigation.
Facets of Death is written by a duo of authors Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip, both professors and born in South Africa, they were able to capture the essence of the setting with their understanding of the culture, area, and dialect, this brought a further layer of escapism to the novel, where the reader
was able to travel through the medium of words. Another aspect I both enjoyed and appreciated was the attention to detail from the authors, who included a map (A MAP!), a character list and a glossary, I felt this further enabled me to enjoy this read, as well as learning.
Facets of Death is available now to order in ebook format, and is due to be published by Orenda Books in paperback on the 29th of April. You can pre-order your copy here. Let me warn you, you’ll be entranced and you’ll run and buy the whole series… I’m talking from experience!
Thanks again to Karen for being wonderfully kind and sending me a proof copy of this brilliant book!
The Reading Closet 