Death of the Mantis: A Detective Kubu Mystery (Detective Kubu Series)

"In the southern Kalahari area of Botswana-an arid landscape of legends that speak of lost cities, hidden wealth, and ancient gods-a fractious ranger named Monzo is found dying from a severe head wound in a dry ravine. Three Bushmen surround the doomed man, but are they his killers or there to help? Detective David Kubu Bengu is on the case, an investigation that his old school friend Khumanego claims is motivated by racist antagonism on the part of the local police. But when a second bizarre murder, and then a third, seem to point also to the nomadic tribe, the intrepid Kubu must journey into the depths of the Kalahari to uncover the truth. What he discovers there will test all his powers of detection ... and his ability to remain alive"-- Cover verso. The best book yet in one of the best series going: a serious novel with a mystery at its core that takes us places weve never been. Timothy Hallinan, author of The Queen of Patpong Mystery readers who have not yet made the acquaintance of larger than life African investigator Detective David Kubu Bengu are doing themselves a great disservice. Death of the Mantis is the third Kubu novel from author Michael Stanleyfollowing the critically acclaimed A Carrion Death and The Second Death of Goodluck Tinubu and it plunges the robust manhunter into the chaotic center of a murder case involving nomadic Bushmen that is stoking the fires of prejudice and tribal hatred. Set in Botswanathe fascinating equatorial country also explored by Alexander McCall Smith in his #1 Ladies Detective Agency novels Death of the Mantis is a book alive with the sights and sounds of an exotic and breathtaking land. The exploits of Stanleys singularly captivating policeman protagonist will delight you and keep you guessing. "In the southern Kalahari area of Botswana-an arid landscape of legends that speak of lost cities, hidden wealth, and ancient gods-a fractious ranger named Monzo is found dying from a severe head wound in a dry ravine. Three Bushmen surround the doomed man, but are they his killers or there to help? Detective David Kubu Bengu is on the case, an investigation that his old school friend Khumanego claims is motivated by racist antagonism on the part of the local police. But when a second bizarre murder, and then a third, seem to point also to the nomadic tribe, the intrepid Kubu must journey into the depths of the Kalahari to uncover the truth. What he discovers there will test all his powers of detection ... and his ability to remain alive"--Page 2 of cover When a fractious ranger named Monzo is found dead, fallen into a donga - a dry ravine - surrounded by three Bushmen, the local police arrest the nomads. Detective 'Kubu' Bengu is on the case, which reunites him with his old school friend Khumanego, a Bushman and now an advocate for his people. Khumanego believes the arrests are motivated by racist antagonism from the police, as the Bushmen are claiming that they were at the murder scene because they were trying to help. Soon after Monzo's death, Detective 'Kubu' learns of another case involving two botany students on their way back from a specimen-collecting trip but who were later found dead, seemingly poisoned, at a campground. Could the deaths be connected? In the southern Kalahari area of Botswana a fractious ranger named Monze is found dying from a severe head wound in a dry ravine. Three bushmen surround the doomed man, but are they his killers or there to help? Detective David "Kubu" Bengu is on the case, an investigation that his old school friend claims is motivated by racist antagonism on the part of the local police. But when a second and a third murder seem to point also to the nomadic tribe, the intrepid Kubu must journey into the depths of the Kalahari to uncover the truth When a Kalahari ranger is found dead in a dry ravine, his corpse surrounded by three Bushmen, the local police arrest the nomads. Botswana's Detective 'Kubu' Bengu investigates the case.