Review by Booklist Review
In Cape Town, South African Police Service (SAPS) detectives Benny Griessel and Vaughn Caputo face harsh consequences for refusing to drop a controversial investigation amid South Africa's corruption scandals: they're stripped of their elite Hawks team status and transferred to the 'burbs. In Stellenbosch, their expectations of absolute boredom are upended with their first case, the high-profile disappearance of a student hacker. At the same time, cash-strapped realtor Sandra Steenberg struggles to keep her wits about her as she goes head to head with a seemingly untouchable white-collar criminal and absolute lech, Jasper Boonstra, in a land deal. When Boonstra also vanishes, Griessel suspiciously picks through Sandra's carefully constructed lies. Absorbing procedural details lead to an explosive confrontation with a ruthless street gang and a police-corruption scheme that links SAPS to the country's devastating political scandals. It's a grim period for South Africa, but Griessel and Caputo remain loyal to justice and to each other. A gritty but surprisingly hopeful installment in Meyer's immensely popular series.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In Meyer's stellar seventh thriller featuring South African police detective Benny Griessel (after 2019's The Last Hunt), Griessel and his partner, Vaughn Cupido, members of the elite Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation, have embarrassed the brass by pursuing an inquiry into an apparent suicide that exposed the culpability of agents of the State Security Agency. They're demoted and reassigned from Cape Town to Stellenbosch, where they expect to handle routine matters while awaiting a hoped-for reinstatement. Instead, they become involved in a missing persons case--the disappearance of college student Callie de Bruin, whose hacking skills enabled him to alter records of criminal convictions. Meanwhile, their ever-present concerns about high-level corruption in the police are heightened when Griessel gets an anonymous message stating: "I can only trust you and Captain Cupido. There is an adder in our bosom. Be careful of phone calls." Meyer adds a Madoff-like financial fraudster and a homicide as he toggles between story lines and keeps things moving toward the wholly satisfying conclusion. This is the best work yet from this gifted author. Agent: Richard Pine, InkWell Management. (May)
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Review by Library Journal Review
In this seventh book (after The Last Hunt) in the "Benny Griessel" mystery series, Benny and Vaughn Cupido have been demoted from the elite Hawks patrol unit in the South African police force. They are reassigned to mundane jobs in another unit, where they immediately get put on a missing-person case. Following many twists and turns to find the missing boy, they soon see that his disappearance is part of a much larger series of crimes. Meanwhile, Real Estate agent Sandra Steenberg takes on client Jasper Boonstra, an arrogant playboy billionaire currently involved in a very public scandal. Steenberg is in financial trouble and badly needs the commission the property sale will give her. When Boonstra goes missing, Griessel and Cupido get that case as well. The two cases come together, revealing corruption at the highest levels. The author delivers a host of interesting, funny characters and a story packed with murder and mayhem. Narrator Saul Reichlin enlivens the story translated from Afrikaans by K.L. Seegers. Reichlin delivers South African accents as appropriate and distinctive voices for the many characters. VERDICT Recommended for those who enjoy listening to mystery and to fans of the author.--Joanna M. Burkhardt
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A fast-moving South African police procedural translated from Afrikaans. On a wintry July day, hotshot detective Capt. Benny Griessel and Capt. Vaughn Cupido take an unauthorized jump into a cash-in-transit heist and wind up nearly getting fired. They are both demoted to warrant officer and transferred from Cape Town to nearby Stellenbosch. There, they are assigned to investigate the disappearance of Calvyn "Callie" Wilhelm de Bruin, a computer genius and academic standout from a poor family. In a separate plotline, billionaire sociopath Jasper Boonstra approaches real estate agent Sandra Steenberg on an exclusive basis to sell his wine farm, Donkerdrif, in absolute secrecy. She desperately needs the commission to resolve the dire financial problems she is hiding from her beloved husband. Meanwhile, the detectives chase down clues about Callie as they reveal their own personal problems: Griessel is a so-far-so-good recovering alcoholic, while Cupido frets about his weight prior to his impending marriage--his fiancee has him eating "like a vege-fucka-tarian." As we Yanks would watch our calorie intake, he must watch his kilojoules. "You can't eat, and I can't drink," Griessel says. "We are the perfect partnership." American crime buffs might feel a light culture shock with this story. The translator leaves in enough Afrikaans words to flavor the narrative, but the reader will occasionally ponder their meanings, as in laaitie, stompie, and fokkit (OK, we can guess that last one). And then there's "Smack me with a snot snoek." Eew. Griessel and Cupido are talented, brave, and funny. After Cupido eventually lays eyes on Steenberg, he notes that "she's so hot, she gives me heat rash." Unfortunately, Boonstra thinks so too, and therein lies a problem. What will Steenberg do to earn the commission she needs so badly? And will Callie be found alive? The plotlines are tightly knitted together, and the story ends with a nifty twist. A well-crafted blend of suspense, culture, and humor. Meyer is terrific. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
