Short description
The shocking new thriller from the author of HEART OF THE HUNTER
Long description
Soldiers never find it easy returning from war. So it is with Thobela Mpayipheli, former freedom fighter, trying to settle back into the new South Africa. But at least he has his boy, an adored companion who is a link to a happier past. Then the boy is taken from Thobela, one of a staggering number of children murdered or abused in South Africa, and Thobela knows only despair...and a cold desire for revenge. Thus is born the vigilante killer known as 'Artemis'. The police respond by putting on the case a man who can't afford to fail. Benny Griessel is on the brink of losing everything - his job, his family, his self-respect - and this could be his last chance to drag his life back out of the gutter. And then Benny meets Christine, a young mother working as a prostitute in Cape Town. And something happens that is so frightening, the world can never be the same again, for Benny, for Christine, or for Thobela.
Review
'With Deon Meyer you can't go wrong. He's a writer whose work I admire, wait for and then devour' -- Michael Connelly 20080123 'Moving, expertly constructed story of a broken man's redemption' -- The Sunday Times 20070701 'Deon Meyer, who writes in Afrikaans, portrays a world of terrifying uncertainty, in which those who fought for liberation from apartheid are having to come to terms with the knowledge that freedom is not enough to wipe out cruelty. A thoughtful and exciting novel' -- Times Literary Supplement 20070701 'One of the sharpest and most perceptive thriller writers around...Think of Meyer in the way that you might have regarded a bottle of Cape red a dozen years ago - dark, strong with an unusual but beguilingly moreish taste' -- The Times 20070623 'Meyer is a gifted writer...believable and disturbing' -- Tangled Web 20080510 'I rushed through it like one of Meyer's beloved BMW motorbikes in overdrive. A fantastic read. I know Cape Town well and he did glorious justice to the city's mosaic; the Atlantic view penthouse pads rubbing up against the faded white trash apartment blocks and the booze-clogged coloured townships...I am off to Cape Town in a month's time where I will be a loud advocate for Meyer.' -- Tim Butcher, author of Richard & Judy bestseller Blood River 20080923 A Christmas Choice for best thrillers in 2007 -- Peter Millar, The Times 20080923 'This guy is really good. Deon Meyer hooked me with this one right from the start. HEART OF THE HUNTER is a thriller with some weight attached and that is a rare find.' -- Michael Connelly, author of THE NARROWS, on HEART 20080923 'Out of post-apartheid South Africa comes a thriller good enough to nip at the heels of le Carre ... Wonderful setting; rich, colourful cast, headed by a valiant/vulnerable protagonist.' -- Kirkus Reviews*, on HEART OF THE HUNTER 20080923 'HEART OF THE HUNTER is a brilliant book. Deon Meyer does an excellent job of developing a whole range of characters who are affected by the changes in South Africa in different ways. And Thobela, a giant of a man in search of redemption, is a wonderful hero.' -- Michael Ridpath, author of THE PREDATOR, on HEART 20080923 'Meyer weaves an impressively tangled web and taut narrative keeps the reader guessing until the last couple of pages' -- Heat***, on DEAD AT DAYBREAK 20080923 'Like post-war Germany, post-apartheid South Africa offers fertile ground for reflective fiction ... Senior editor at Little, Brown, Judy Clain, a fellow South African, says, Meyer has an extraordinary landscape - a changed world where the ghosts of the past play a huge role. ' -- Publishers Weekly, on HEART OF THE HUNTER 20041122 'With simmering racial tensions, a bounty of natural resources, and a government whose members worked both sides of the cold-war fence, South Africa should prove fertile ground for many fine spy thrillers to come. Don't be surprised if quite a few of them are written by Meyer.' -- Booklist*, on HEART OF THE HUNTER 20041122 'A glimpse of the soul of the new South Africa in all its glory, and with all the gory details of its problems and corruption...I marvelled at the intricacy of the plotting, I smiled at Christine's cheeky ingenuity, I felt Thobela's pain and Benny's desperation, and I was stunned by a denouement of awesome power and accomplishment' -- Guardian 20070721 'A fascinating portrayal...a black, assegai-wielding former freedom fighter who turns into a vigilante and goes on a killing spree; a high-class tart; and a policeman who drinks to drown the screaming that's waiting inside his head: One day it will come out and I am scared that I am the one who will hear it. It does come out and he is the one who hears it, winding up the tension to a gripping, shocking climax. Highly recommended.' -- Jessica Mann, Literary Review 20070601 'A sombre but terrifying thriller, and some parts will ignite even those readers with the iciest of hearts...Meyer plays the best of mind games with his readers' -- Mail & Guardian, South Africa 20070810 'Tough in-your-face crime writing that spares nothing in language, visceral scenes of blood and mayhem (for Meyer is adroit at choreographing descriptions of slaughter), and never waivers from the compelling pace of the story. It also has a mean line in humour that comes through in the snappy dialogue.' -- Sunday Independent, South Africa 20070810 'My favourite South African thriller writer' -- James Mitchell, Tonight, South Africa 20070810 'Rangy, ambitious ... the real drama hangs on every exchange between members of the multiracial police force and the citizens they're sworn to protect.' -- Kirkus Reviews 20070810 'Deon Meyer is the best known contemporary South African crime writer. His six books have won a number of awards, and he was the first to honestly reflect the current realities of the new South Africa in his books ... If you think the vigilante theme is cliched, read this book ... The book is a page-turning thriller.' -- Michael Stanley in The Guardian 20100630