The Trial of Maximo Bonga

by John Harris

On one of South East Asia’s most remote beaches, a young woman’s body is found. The corrupt local police think they have found the perfect fall guy in Maximo Bonga, a cantankerous World War II veteran and owner of the weirdest guesthouse in town. But unbeknownst to them, an unlikely friendship has been forged between Maximo and John, one of the boarders of Maximo’s guest-house-cum-boot-camp, where an old machine gun and camouflaged mantraps stand guard, sandbags form fences and a tyrannical pet rooster terrorises the guests. Along with an eccentric bunch of modern-world rejects, John sets out to defend the old soldier in a kangaroo court set up at the local cockpit, in a paradise like no other.

Genres: Fiction

ebook

First published June 11, 2015

About the author

John[19 spaces]Harris

At the age of 18, after a variety of dismal package holidays, John Harris bought a ticket to Egypt; things would never be the same again. Following a few years of on-off travel, mostly in Africa, he decided to go a stage further and work in the developing world, joining VSO to work as a building instructor in Nigeria.

Back in London, life proved uninspiring and the draw of distant shores called again. John set off on his trip round South-East Asia which later formed the background for The Backpacker.

Reviews

[paul Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

at last John has written another book- after The Backpacker. this one is very different but once again, you cannot put it down. well written, John takes you on a journey through the weird and wonderful world of people who don't quite fit in. this should be turned into a film!

[Simon Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook: A hugely enjoyable tale set in my country of residence, the Philippines. To an outsider many events seem unbelievable, they're not, they do happen. Beautifully written, laced with humour and a keen eye for the daily life that makes the country and the people frustrating but loveable, often in extremes. The narration is just right. Very enjoyable. As they say here, "Only in the Philippines."

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you loved The Beach, you will LOVE this.

[Phil Valliant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too bad, after reading the backpacker I was expecting something similar. It was a pretty good book just not as good as crazy as his other(the backpacker).

[Guy Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

The characters are just as entertaining as the story line. Well worth a read if you enjoyed his first book.

[Megalion · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had all the apparent components of the kind of quirky read I particularly enjoy.

Unfortunately, I couldn't get into the story.

There's no obvious cause for it. The writing was decent. But the magic didn't happen.

I would not expect my experience to be the norm. After all, despite reading multiple books by Neil Gaiman, I still can't tap into the massive love of his work by many of my peers who have the same tastes I do.

I hope the story clicks for the rest of you. It does look really good!

Thank you to the publisher for the free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.