Synopses & Reviews
An antiques dealer in Cape Town is found dead, killed execution-style with a single shot to the back of the head. The contents of his safe are missing, suggesting robbery, but the weapon used in the killing is an M16 a gun that's generally the choice of mercenaries, not burglars.
Zed van Heerden is a former police office with connections to the world of soldiers and mercenary fighters from South Africa's battles for independence. And when he's called in to find out more about the victim, he quickly learns that this man in his fifties has no traces of a life earlier than 1983. Who was Johannes Jacobus Smit, and how did he invent a new life for himself out of nothing? What are the secrets that might have gotten him killed?
Van Heerden's probe stirs a fast and violent response, and before he has any idea what he's involved in, there's a seven-day countdown for his own survival. He has stumbled into the minefield of Africa's secret forces, a world where true loyalties are buried deep and treachery and violence are the only certainties. He must trust the instincts developed in his own frightening past to help him learn the truth and use that truth to save his own life.
Deon Meyer recreates the beauty, wildness, and danger of modern Africa with an immediacy and force no other writer has achieved. Winner of Le Grand Prix de Litterature Policiere 2003, his work is undeniably "a cause for celebration" (Susanna Yager, Sunday Telegraph).
Review
"Meyer's second disappoints....Zat...wallows in introspection...which will hamper pace and hamstring thrillers every time....A step back then, but enough flashes of real talent to hope for better from his next." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"Meyer seamlessly merges two engrossing story lines in his second novel....A breathtaking pace, heart-pounding action set against a psychological backdrop, and a fascinating protagonist make this book a winner. Highly recommended." Library Journal
Review
"The reader...might prefer less angst and more thought about the state of the nation something along the philosophical lines of...the much superior protagonist of the author's previous novel, Heart of the Hunter." Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
A headspinning thriller from crime writer Deon Meyer: the story of an ex-cop who has seven days to solve a seemingly unsolvable crime--the answer to which lies in his own dark past.
"Exciting....A terrific ride on almost every level." --Chicago Tribune
When Johannes Jacobus Smit, an antiques dealer, is found burned with a blowtorch and killed execution-style with a single shot to the back of the head, former cop Zatopek "Zed" van Heerden is called in to investigate the unusual circumstances of the murder. Zed is still obsessed with the betrayals of his own past but must fill in the blanks of this victim's life. Who tortured and killed Smit, and who was Smit in the first place? Not the man whose papers he carries, that much is certain. Zed can never be sure of the loyalties of the people with whom he is dealing--his own past reputation ensures that--and he soon finds himself uncovering secrets that the security services of many countries would like left alone.
Synopsis
A headspinning thriller from crime writer Deon Meyer: the story of an ex-cop who has seven days to solve a seemingly unsolvable crime -- the answer to which lies in his own dark past. When Johannes Jacobus Smit, an antiques dealer, is found burned with a blowtorch and killed execution-style with a single shot to the back of the head, former cop Zatopek Zed van Heerden is called in to investigate the unusual circumstances of the murder. Zed is still obsessed with the betrayals of his own past but must fill in the blanks of this victim's life. Who tortured and killed Smit, and who was Smit in the first place? Not the man whose papers he carries, that much is certain. Zed can never be sure of the loyalties of the people with whom he is dealing -- his own past reputation ensures that -- and he soon finds himself uncovering secrets that the security services of many countries would like left alone.
Exciting....A terrific ride on almost every level.-Chicago Tribune
Synopsis
The newest headspinning thriller from the breakout South African crime writer, author of Heart of the Hunter, is the story of an ex-cop who has seven days to solve a seemingly unsolvable crime the answer to which lies in his own dark past.
Synopsis
- This is a taut, provocative mystery and a telling psychological portrait of a man and a nation haunted by the past.- This book provides another tightly woven, brilliantly written thriller with an African backdrop--appealing to readers of "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.- Deon Meyer has already been published to great success and acclaim in the UK, France, Italy, Germany and many other countries beyond his native South Africa. His previous book, "Heart of the Hunter (7/04), was his first US release and this new book will build on the exciting feedback generated by "Heart's publication.- The movie rights to "Heart of the Hunter have been sold to Jungle Media. Tiny, the central character in that book, has a recurring role in this book as well.- The mass market of "Heart of the Hunter will be published in 7/05 and will include a teaser chapter of DEAD AT DAYBREAK.
About the Author
Deon Meyer is an internationally renowned South African crime writer who also works as a journalist and Internet consultant. He is the author of Heart of the Hunter and Dead Before Dying. He lives in Cape Town.