The book was published in Britain in 2008, and is just now being published in the US. The author is an Afrikaner himself and this is the translated version from the original Afrikaaner version. Hats off to the translators I must say because you'd never know this book is not in the original language. There are a number of local terms used, but always italicized and never used such that you can't determine their meaning from the context of the sentence. I particularly enjoyed the plot elements surrounding the vulture sanctuary project and various anti-poaching efforts taking place.

The story revolves around Lemmer, a bodyguard assigned to protect a young woman, Emma, who is in danger. Lemmer is a complicated character, with a convoluted past that is slowly revealed throughout the course of the novel. The first part of the book is a fairly straight-forward mystery as Lemmer follows Emma in her attempts to locate her brother, a man most people thought was dead for these past 20 years. Mr Meyer uses an interesting writing tool in the book: most of it is written in 1st person POV (Lemmer) but parts of it are written in 3rd person. That has potential to be intrusive in the narrative thread but here it works great.

The second part of the story turns everything on its head. It's absolutely delightful to read a thriller/mystery that is unpredictable and also includes multi-dimensional characters that you come to care about. Add to that a smart dialogue, humerous yet real, and you've got a real page-turner on your hands.

An oddly slow read, considering all its packed action. But definitely worth sticking with. Though I'm not sure I'll read the rest of the series. Maybe. Not sure.

A decent read but not up to par with the author's previous works. I did enjoy the main character, the rural South African setting, and I learned quite a bit about the environmental issues facing South Africa. Unfortunately the resolution of the plot was overly complicated and too unrealistic for my tastes and the book was a bit overlong.

Masterful as always Meyer has written another riveting read. Environmentalism, tourism, geo-political intrigue, and corporate greed all merge in this thriller. I just wish I had more geographical familiarity with the topography of South Africa (SA)-but he does a good job trying to familiarize you. About the only thing I didn't like about this book was its title, which seemed quite incongruous given the American idea of safari. This is a book about violence,vengeance and justice, about fear and living in the shadows, and finding yourself. As much as SA looks to the future it can't escape its recent past. I liked too how Meyer fashioned his modern day showdown on the site of the Zulu victory over the Swazi's. Unlike other writers who fixate on particular characters and create a series, Meyer creates new characters and we are left early on in the book feeling very comfortable with these new people. Meyer does a superb job of introducing us to them quickly. They seem familiar but also mysterious. Perhaps the series or character is the country itself.

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Engaging mystery (with a resolution I didn't see coming), and I enjoyed the setting in South Africa, even though there were many words and phrases I wasn't familiar with.
But, I never really connected with Lemmer, the protagonist. No desire to really read anything else by Meyer.

Mystery set in South Africa and translated from Afrikaans.

Love his characters, with all their flaws, and the weight of the county's history on their shoulders.

His storylines are fast paced, filled with interesting cultural information, evocations of the land, and just plain good.

The books are translated from Afrikaans, but read to me like they were written in English.

Have not read one of his books that I did not like, each one is a treat.

~ English version of the review follows the Afrikaans ~

Wat 'n boek! Dis my eerste Deon Meyer, maar gaan beslis nie my laaste wees nie.

Meyer is 'n bobaas storieverteller, sy karakters is beide geloofbaar en volrond en sy navorsing is uitstekend. Ons voel met en vir karakters soos Emma, Lemmer en Jacobus, want hulle is bo alles menslik, met al hul swakhede en sterktes.

Die manier waarop hy kontensieuse gebeure uit beide die (boek se) hede en Suid-Afrika se verlede ineen werk, is uitstaande. En langs die pad laat Meyer so terloops sy siening van sake uit, maar dit is nooit indringend of ongeplaas nie. Wat hy by monde van Lemmer van die "Ryk Afrikaner" dink, byvoorbeeld, is onafskeidbaar van die wel en wee van sy karakters.

Die spanningslyn in "Onsigbaar" gun die leser min kans om asem te skep. Meyer vleg die elemente van sy storie baie behendig tot 'n vloeiende geheel. Die draaiboekskrywer in hom help beslis as dit by sy skryfwerk kom. Ek is geweldig beïndruk deur "Onsigbaar" en kan dit nie sterk genoeg aanbeveel nie.

Nou moet ek net meer van sy boeke in die hande kry, iets wat nogal moeilik is hier in Australië.

***


What a novel! This is my first Deon Meyer, but will definitely not be the last.

Meyer is a master storyteller, his characters are both credible and fully rounded, and his research is excellent. We feel with and for characters like Emma, Lemmer and Jacobus, because they are, above all, human, with all their strengths and weaknesses.

The way in which he works contentious events from both the (book’s) present and South Africa’s past into his story is outstanding. Along the way Meyer almost casually drops hints as to his view of things, but these are never intrusive or unnecessary. What he (by way of Lemmer) thinks of the “Rich Afrikaner”, for instance, is an essential part of the lives of his characters.

The tension in the storyline of “Onsigbaar” (available as “Blood Safari” in English) is relentless and does not give the reader any opportunity to pause for breath. Meyer masterfully weaves the elements of his story into fluent whole. His work as scriptwriter definitely helps when it comes to his narration. I am deeply impressed by “Onsigbaar” and cannot recommend it strongly enough.

Now I need to get hold of more of his books in Afrikaans, not always easy when one lives in Australia.