Thirteen Hours

Inspector Benny Griessel is one of the few white detectives left in the South African Police Force. The end of apartheid and affirmative action have meant that most have left, but Benny is one of the few who have stayed on in the new South Africa.  His superiors know he is a good copper but he is still combating the after effects of alcoholism and his latest job is to mentor some of the forces youngest and brightest detectives and their cases.  It is lucky for SAPS that Benny is still around,  because his 25 years of experience is called into play when he is sent to investigate the death of young American college student, Erin Russel, who has had her throat cut from ear to ear.  It is not long before Benny and the young black detective he is mentoring discover that Erin may be dead but it is race against the clock to save her travelling companion, Rachel Anderson  who is being relentlessly hunted by Erin’s killers all across Cape Town.

As if Benny doesn’t have enough to do, not long after they discover the plight of Rachel Anderson, he and another young detective are called in to find out who is responsible for the shooting death of a prominent South African record label owner, Adam Barnard is found next to his passed out ex.pop star wife.  All the evidence points to Alexandra Barnard  as the shooter but is it that easy?  In the new a violent South Africa you can bet not!

Although the detective Benny Griessel has appeared ion some of Deon Meyer’s other books, you do not have to have read them to  pick up and enjoy this fantastic murder mystery.  A ripper of a read that I strongly recommend if you are fan of crime novels and want to read something different.

Year published: 2010
Bronwen Wade, ABC 1062‘s rating: 9 out of 10