Who Killed Piet Barol?

by Richard Mason

Cape Town, 1914. Where a person can be whoever they want to be . . .

Former tutor Piet Barol and singer Stacey Meadows are making a splash in colonial Cape Town. Styling themselves as the Vicomte and Vicomtesse de Barol, they have been living by their wits - but as the world drifts towards war, their quest for comfort and riches has brought them close to bankruptcy. With creditors at their heels, their furniture business is imploding and only a major win will save them.

Stacey finds the ideal stooge: a mining magnate with a mansion to furnish. Piet enlists two Xhosa men to lead him into the magical forest of Gwadana, in search of a fabled tree. He needs precious wood, but he doesn't want to pay for it.

The Natives Land Act has just abolished property rights for the majority of black South Africans, and whole families have been ripped apart. As Piet's charm, charisma and appetite for risk lead him far beyond the safety of the privileged white world, he does not comprehend the enormous price of the lies he has told, nor where they will lead him . . .

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Africa, Book Club, World War I, 20th Century, Novels

386 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 8, 2016

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Reviews

[Paolo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Illeggibili prime 50 pagine, sufficienti per lasciar perdere.
Partiamo dalla fascetta:
Il grande ritorno dell'autore di "Anime alla deriva"
Il libro dell'anno per :
- The Times
- The Observer
- Mail on Sunday
Quarta di copertina: ripetuto il concetto con in più 4 sperticati elogi sempre dai succitati giornali.
Si apre il volume ed invece della consueta dedica o dell'inizio del romanzo si trova scritto:
-Libro dell'anno -The Times
-Libro dell'anno - The Observer
-Libro dell'anno - Mail on Sunday

Concetto a questo punto espresso 9 volte. Seguono 4 pagine e mezzo con 23 (ventitre) estratti di recensioni estasiate da altrettante testate più o meno prestigiose. Anche da parte di un tal Amazon.com (che credevo fosse un grande magazzino informatico, non un critico letterario...) che afferma:
"questo romanzo è un trionfo. Una volta iniziato e impossibile staccarsene. Riesce a farti ascoltare e annusare (sic) la foresta e ti trasporta in un viaggio straordinario, con una prosa degna del cinema."

Con questo frastuono di entusiastici elogi, ovviamente aspettative altissime, direttamente proporzionali al fastidio di vedere questo diluvio di consensi.

Vabbè la fascetta, ma replicarla per 6/7 pagine mi sembra troppo.

Capitolo 1: La scena si svolge a Città del Capo, Sudafrica, luglio 1914. Il protagonista Piet Barol vede languire la propria attività di mobili pregiati nonostante l'intraprendenza della vispa moglie, ex cantante d'opera americana trasferita in Francia. Cosa che peraltro non mi stupisce, in Sudafrica nel 1914 mi figuro ci sia più mercato per fucili da caccia e forniture per l'allevamento che per comodini e consolle. La scrittura è frammentaria e scialba, un po' da romanzo rosa, parlano solo i personaggi femminili, questo Piet Barol, che pure dovrebbe essere il protagonista, praticamente non lascia traccia.

Capitolo 2 : si introduce il personaggio di Ntsina Zini, un nero che lavora in miniera. Scampa per miracolo ad un micidiale incidente in un pozzo, abbandona la miniera e vaga per l'altopiano, deciso a far ritorno al villaggio "non senza i soldi per la tassa sulla capanna o senza una radio" (una radio ? - mi sembra di aver letto male..): scorro le pagine in avanti ed arrivo a pag. 465 dove ci sono le DRAMATIS PERSONAE, alla voce Ntsina Zini si legge: giovane uomo xhosa, alla ricerca di una radio.

Allora avevo letto bene, ma qualcosa non mi torna. Rapida consultazione della fida wikipedia cui va ogni anno il mio cinquepermille, che mi conferma che le prime trasmissioni di parole umane via radio avviene nel 1919 (prima solo in codice Morse e per usi militari marittimi e postali).
Comincio a preoccuparmi di scoprire perché non si vendono mobili pregiati e perché un giovane xhosa ricerca una radio che non dovrebbe esistere nel Sudafrica del 1914...

A pagina 33 rispunta il protagonista, Piet che "fu svegliato dal rumore di un baule Louis Vuitton malconcio che veniva trascinato dentro la stanza...." chissà che rumore particolare farà un baule Louis Vuitton, per di più malconcio.

Veder piazzare marchi e marche (e marchette) nei libri è fastidioso, nondimeno talvolta giustificato, quasi necessario. Ad esempio Murakami: sappiamo (ed i negozianti di Firenze e Venezia più di tutti) quanto il benessere economico degli anni 80 abbia prodotto nei giapponesi una ricerca bulimica del lusso e della griffe. Citare i marchi in questo caso è pertinente al contesto.

Ma in Sudafrica 1914, è così indispensabile sapere la marca di un baule ? E 20 righe dopo Ntsina vede passare una Packard decappottabile. Bisogna proprio precisare la marca ? Cosa vuoi dirci Mason ? che il giovane xhosa che cerca la radio inesistente sa anche riconoscere i modelli delle macchine americane di inizio secolo ? Spiegaci cosa c'è di importante/interessante in tutto ciò ?

Sono domande angoscianti le cui risposte non mi possono interessare di meno, pertanto, caro Richard Mason, ti destino al Libraccio nel tentativo di rientrare almeno parzialmente dei 19,90 € incautamente spesi.

[Susanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a jaw-dropper of a book, an astonishingly compelling and memorable read -- with a curiously inappropriate title, and a cover design that will do nothing to lure readers in. This is NOT a murder mystery or a detective story. It is an extraordinarily creative novel that examines the arrogant cruelties visited by white Europeans on the native peoples of South Africa at about the time of the first world war. The author is a white South African who has evidently taken the time and effort to learn the language and culture of the Xhosa people in order to write his transformative novel. Assuming his research is correct, he offers a respectful and sorrowful introduction to a culture most of us will never know. And what a fine roller-coaster of a story he has made of this history! The tension of the story made me put it down repeatedly just to let my heart rate return to normal levels, and to let me brace myself for the inevitable tragic ending.

Rest assured that the book is not an unmitigated tragedy however -- by telling the story through the experiences of "Piet Barol", the fictional hero of his 2012 book "History of a Pleasure Seeker", we are assured a charmed, charming and basically goodhearted and well-intentioned tour guide, right up to the moment when "charm" is no longer enough to justify the damage done to the Xhosa people. Piet is a handsome scoundrel of the first order, now posing as a French aristocrat while scheming to make his fortune as a furniture maker to South Africa's wealthy white elite. As in the prior book, he is a charismatic character and you can't help but like him -- he may be blithely unaware of the degree of harm he causes, but he is far and away the least awful of the white Europeans in the story.

The introduction to Xhosa characters and culture is fascinating! The jungle itself (and the wildlife that inhabit it) form a living background to the tale. I feel privileged to have been allowed a peek into this astonishing world -- and astonished as well that Richard Mason managed to create TWO such different books about one unforgettable character.

[Kasa Cotugno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written, immersive novel set in WWI era South Africa. Every element is given respect, and although I didn't read the preceding novel (History of a Pleasure Seeker), I had no trouble reading this as a standalone. Given the description, I expected Piet Barol to be more of a scoundrel than as depicted here. Apparently the previous novel presented him as an opportunist, whereas here, his character is more sympathetic. Where this novel succeeds is in giving the Xhosa characters inner lives, and even the wild creatures have personalities. Beautiful natural evocations of the ancestral forests, sensual and authentic.

[Charlie Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short version: In Who Killed Piet Barol?, Richard Mason effectively uses sumptuous prose for a piquant and sub rosa dissection of identity and differences, suspicions, and disrespect within and between cultures.

Now, for the longer version. Who Killed Piet Barol? resonates on many levels, one being a tale about the exploitation of a culture by a privileged interloper, a plot which feels incredibly relevant but not in a cheap, sensationalized, pulled-from-the-headlines way. Rather, this is a presentation of the history of the despoliation of hallowed ground -- literally and figuratively --- with the plundering of a sacred site and the accompanying dissolution of the morality of multiple characters.

Here is a synopsis from the author's website: RICHARDMASON.ORG:

Pretender Piet Barol and singer Stacey Meadows are making a splash in colonial Cape Town but are running out of cash. With creditors at their heels, their furniture business is imploding and only a major win will save them. So Piet enlists two Xhosa men to lead him into the magical forest of Gwadana in search of precious wood.

Meanwhile the Natives Land Act has just abolished property rights for the majority of black South Africans, and whole families have been ripped apart. Piet’s charm and appetite for risk lead him far beyond the privileged white world to a land and community that sees him with new eyes.

A novel about the truth in magic and the enduring consequences of lies, Who Killed Piet Barol? is published by Weidenfeld & Nicholson in the UK (September 2016) and by Alfred A. Knopf in the US (January 2016).

It speaks to Mr. Mason's authorial gifts that despite the repellent acts Piet Barol commits and his situational amorality, because of his ultimately inadequate attempts to "do right", the reader can still feel sympathy for him as victim (cooperative, or not) of the prejudices and distortions of his culture. That he is neither hero nor villain is further contextualized by comparison to other characters who share his cultural milieu; his wife, Stacey Barol; their friends and clients, Percy and Dorothy Shabrill; and, finally, Frank Albemarle, corralled into the circle by Stacey to save a situation she may have cursed.

In counter-voice, there are the Xhosa natives; Ntsina Zini and LuvoYako, the two of whom are in Piet's employ (and collude with him) as he ravages the magic forest, and Nosakhe Zini, village witch doctor; Sujude Zini, Ntsina's father; the Jaxa clan, in particular the daughters Bela and Zandile. They, like the Piet-collection, are fully-drawn with all the charms and flaws, goodness and sinfulness, full range of shortcomings and virtues most human beings have.

While it is illuminating the way members of each culture view the other as other, the Xhosa even calling the Dutch (and others) The Strange Ones, almost any writer might have accomplished a portrait of that tension (though certainly not with the fluidity and grace of syntax and language Mr. Mason has managed.); what strikes to almost breathtaking degree about Mr. Mason's take are the ways in which each culture is conflicted within itself --- there is disunity and misunderstanding and deceit and disinformation inside each group, sowing the seeds which lead ultimately to devastating loss to and in both communities.

Too, while the human voices are by turns fascinating, witty, elegant, carnal, passionate, and intense, there is also an anthropomorphization of the sacred trees, the insects, the animals, the forest, the elements, the weather, so we hear their cerebration in equal weight with the biped thoughts. I hesitate to mention this because some might call such voicing (and some other elements of the tale) magic realism, but this reader finds that term off-putting, too often code used to describe a twee or navel-gazing tone, narcotizing and infuriatingly self-indulgent. Not the case at all here where the multiple perspectives mesh in a compelling harmony.

The novel is a literary symphony of many themes, introduced, echoed, enhanced, and amplified as they are interwoven, these individually fascinating and enchanting motifs which, finally, in ways surprising and seamless, crescendo into an arrangement of captivating discord a reader will find both beautiful and terrifying in its truth.

Who Killed Piet Barol is a unique read, wrought by a skilled charismatic of literature who is deftly able to conjure complex worlds and guide the reader on a journey which, like all the best travel, not only informs and expands one's own reality, but leaves one with additional questions and new ways of seeing.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sequel to "History of a Pleasure Seeker," which introduced the character of Piet Barol. Handsome, eloquent, and charming, Piet learned about the finer things in life from his French mother. His father was not wealthy, but despite his humble roots, Piet managed to advance his position to being a tutor for a small boy in the finest home in Belle Epoque Amsterdam, and somehow, through various adventures, always lands on his feet. Though this book can be enjoyed without reading the previous one, if you've never read either, I'd recommend reading them in order.

This early 20th-century historical novel finds Piet, his young son, and his American wife Stacey in colonial South Africa. Piet has been successful with his furniture business, using his artistic talents to create sketches, and hiring local carvers to create his ideas and mind the shop. He and Stacey both have the same passion for luxurious high living beyond their means, and soon their financial situation is dire. The only solution is to take advantage of an odious prior acquaintance, the wealthy Percy Shabrill, who has just built a huge new house. Together Piet and Stacy convince the Shabrills that the furniture they already ordered, as well as all the draperies (in the highly fashionable mauve color), are completely unsuitable, so they con them into a vast down payment for an entirely new set of furniture. The adventure lies in Piet's obtaining the wood for free from the remote Gwadana forest , which is only possible with the cooperation of his two native friends, the tribal Ntsina and Western-educated Luvo.

One of Mason's unique qualities as a writer is the use of third-person omniscient, which he even extends to plants and animals, as well as minor characters. Few authors can manage this perspective well. Readers complain endlessly about "head hopping" and overall, most readers seem to prefer first-person narrative. But it is a great way to tell a complex story, if the author's prose is good enough to make every character's perspective interesting, which Mason's certainly is. His descriptions have a beautiful lyrical quality which fits in nicely with the early 20th-century time in which his novels are set.

Mason also has the unique ability to construct and engaging plot. His prose advances the plot and develops the characters - what more could you ask? But with third-person omniscient, you get to know some characters with moral flaws. I suppose Stacey, Piet's wife, is one of those. She loves him, sure, but she also loves money. And she hates the native South Africans, though her racism is fairly standard for the era. But most despicably, she fetishizes Piet's gift of conning anyone out of anything. Even more so than does Piet himself, who sees it more as a necessity for survival. The scenes in which both of them feel a sexual thrill from conning the Shabrills are among the most disturbing in the book - and it does get pretty dark towards the end.

As in the previous novel featuring Piet, sex plays a big role, though the book is not sexually explicit, but Mason delves deeply into the emotions surrounding sex. It's interesting for me, as a female reader, to get some insight into how men view sex, because I don't feel that female authors capture that well. Conversely, Mason's descriptions of the sexuality of his female characters sometimes feels a bit off. Sure, women like sex, but perhaps it doesn't motivate our actions quite as much as Mason has inferred. As in the previous novel, there is a conflicted homosexual character, but Piet's bisexuality is not directly addressed.

The big adventure is whether or not Piet will get the wood out of the forest and the furniture carved in time to meet Shabrill's demands so he can receive the other 50% of the payment. I can't write much more without revealing spoilers, but suffice to say, this is the grand denouement of the novel. Mason's love of South Africa shines through the marvelous descriptions of the forest, the tribal people and the animals and plants who live there, and the terribly unfair and cruel laws that created the system of apartheid that has only recently been eradicated.

The only reason I gave it four stars instead of five is that I'm a sentimentalist and I'd like to see Piet land on his feet, as he did in the first novel, but here, he does not. Things get dark, very dark indeed, but still illuminated by Mason's lovely prose and a tight, well-constructed plot that makes the reader anxious to learn the outcome of the adventure.

Disclaimer: I received a reviewer's copy of this book, but my opinions are my own.

[Bookread2day · Rating 3 out of 5]

We all know not to tell lies. Cape Town South Africa July, 1914.The adventures of his twenties had taught Piet Barol that it is unwise to begin with a lie. It was Stacey who had suggested, moments after their arrival in Africa, that they introduce themselves as Baron and Baroness Pierre de Barol. He had enjoyed this fiction enormously at the start. They laughed so much that for months Piet did not appreciate the price of his enormous lie.

[Kenneth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Case Study in How to Destroy Your Career

You write an amazing novel and create one of the most memorable, extraordinary characters ever created in literature, Piet Barol. Then for some inexplicable reason you write a second novel featuring this character but change him 100% so that he is a boring dud with zero resemblance to who he was in the first novel. Such a deep betrayal. What a disappointing mess. And such a pointless, depressing story it was. Unlikeable on all levels. Waste of time.

[Lex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to preface my review by saying that this is a magnificent book, and made me want to pick up everything by Richard Mason.

Who Killed Piet Barol? is set in South Africa in 1914, and both local politics (The Native Lands Act) and world politics (WWI) play a role in the story, which follows ambitious furniture maker Piet Barol's quest for the perfect wood--as well as about a dozen side plots. This goal brings him into conflict with the Xhosa natives when he sets his sights on trees that they believe house the spirits of their ancestors, and a multi-layered web of lies, intrigue and deception ensues (though it existed from pg. 1).

The story is told from multiple points of view, including even plants and animals, which makes the forest of Gwadana itself feel like a main character. All of the characters (black and white, South African and foreign, human and animal) have goals, flaws, and strengths that make them compelling, and I never found myself wanting to skim through one POV to get to another, which is a good sign of masterful storytelling. Even the awful, immoral people were interesting. One thing I loved about the book is that it really digs into the clash between traditional and modern ways of life without choosing sides: both are awful for different reasons, and as a reader I had constant mixed feelings, unsure of the outcomes I wanted.

Like any book set in a time period or culture different than my own, I was curious about the accuracy of the rich details Mason includes, from tribal traditions to politics, and was impressed to read (on the back flap of the book) that he "founded Project Lulutho, a center for green farming in South Africa's rural Eastern Cape, and spent a year living under canvas--learning the language and culture of the Xhosa people." That point toward authenticity made the book even more powerful.

Last but not least, I need to give a nod to the perfection of the book's title. It had me looking for a murder mystery around every corner, and my curiosity helped keep me reading. One warning: Who Killed Piet Barol? isn't shy about sex and violence (and, like in real life, none of the characters get truly happy endings) so if you're not willing to read about people being raped or ripped apart be leopards, this may not be the book for you.

[Catalina · Rating 5 out of 5]

5*

“Death, in any case,' [...] 'is the object of life. Our only lesson is this: to learn how to die.”*

“I might even read the sequel” - I was saying in my review of History of a Pleasure Seeker in 2014. Imagine my surprise and happiness when I received an email offering me the opportunity to read and review the said sequel. Obviously the only possible answer was: Yes, yes please!

Wow this book...this book is powerful, savage(as in fierce, violent, and uncontrolled) But then I told myself, savage is such a controversial word to use, especially seen the subject, so I start searching for a more appropriate synonym. I am scanning the list: aboriginal, barbarian, brute, primitive until I get to 'in a state of nature' -eureka! I believe this is the perfect word to describe this book. The most important aspect of this book, Mason's most important achievement, is the rawness with which he present each and every detail, each and every world, each and every clash, without hiding anything, without sugar coating the events, without(it seamed to me) judging!


We find Piet in Cape Town, 10 years later. Still his ever charming self, sensuous as ever (handsome, sculptured body, good manners, good voice, good general knowledge, ambition, self-confidence, I mean he is close to perfection – was my description of Piet in 2014) yet with a touch of middle age(maybe) or better with a touch of normality in the form of complacency – he kind of settled in his new found glamour, starting with his “acquired” title: vicomte and sustained by his 'thriving' furniture business, he puts on weight, he has a family and a little one that he really loves(I enjoyed the relationship he had with Arthur, and especially the 'free range' education that takes place in the forest) concentrates on his artistic endeavors without further care for other business aspects. But clouds start to gather, announcing storm: bankruptcy!

After a few pages introducing the new circumstances of Piet's life and creating the bridge with the prequel, we see things starting to unfold. Piet and Stacey cook a plan to get out of problems by getting advantage of old enemies and founding cheaper wood.

So under Shabrills' roof Piet, Ntsina and Luvo find themselves partners in a new adventure, an important mission set off by Piet's need of cheaper wood. Piet, Ntsina and Luvo, each exponent of a different world, each with different believes and different moral standards. Their stories converge to create an amazing, powerful, fierce story. It's so enriching to see such strong, multi-layered characters, presented from so many points of view. They are so well written that you are absorbed into the story, into the story of each and every one of them to the point that you don't know whose side to take.

Piet finds the most exquisite wood, wood which makes him dream the most intricate furniture, the DREAM of every artist. But what to do when the ancestors of an entire culture reside in this trees you dream about? And when your secret weapon fails you, what's left to use? Treachery, lies, playing on Xhosa's occult believes plus knowing how to manipulate events unfolding around? Maybe, but how about consequences?

A slow burn up to around half. I had to pause it all the time, or read just a few pages a day, as to not give it up entirely. And when it finally was too much(I was constantly fighting to either read non-stop or to stop reading in order to prolong my experience as much as possible) and I couldn't put it down, I didn't had enough time to read. Such frustration. Not to mention the amount of days for which I postponed the writing of this review, just because I couldn't decided what to write and what to leave for you guys to discover alone.

Greed, sexual drive and spirituality duel fiercely in this book. The most important driving forces of human nature come into play, all three so powerful that only tragedy can end this fight. The author manages to skilfully pass from point of view to point of view, without damaging the story, but actually adding to it, making it absolutely gorgeous. I cannot praise enough the 3 dimensional characters and especially the rawness of the story. I will always admire an author that is not afraid to present reality as it is, who is not afraid to maybe be politically incorrect; or give voice to the oppressed without transforming them in some sort of shining knight, but showing them as there are: with good and bad parts.

Who killed Piet Barol is at the opposite pole from the opulence, sensuality and decadence of History of a Pleasure Seeker. The primitive, the naked driving forces of hum

an nature pervade this one and puts us to the brink, almost making us afraid. 3 different worlds collide, worlds directly opposite – from being slave to nature to “Nature has been sold into slavery“, with Christianity playing some sort of mediator role – when did that had positive results?!

Piet is a fallen God at the end of the first book, getting even lower at the beginning of the second one to outdone himself by the end of it. It was almost comical to see him becoming a sort of lumberjack God, I almost lusted after him myself, lol. But everything ends with his death. He definitely had a spectacular death, just as his life had been. And while his death can be seen as a punishment, I believe it was his salvation. It was the only way he could redeem himself and overcome his involvement and all the pain caused by the unfortunately events covered in the book. He was a good man with his fair share of bad parts, but aren't we all?


* "The goal of all life is death" wrote Sigmund Freud in Beyond the Pleasure Principle. So this quote seems like a reformulation but still almost the first time I encounter this idea in a novel. And it does raise another question: why do we die?
**Book received in exchange for a review
*** Honest review

[Raluca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought on a whim and having lingered on my shelf for quite a while, "Who Killed Piet Barol?" really caught me once I finally got to it. Mason is a clever director, making sure his characters, while acting with full internal consistency, get caught up in misunderstandings and misdirections that spiral out of control. The notes at the end also made me appreciate the process of writing this novel (and Mason's awareness of the fraught cultural territory he's walking).
Not a full five stars because of the unnecessary postscript (you've followed two main characters throughout, what's with this sudden desire to wrap up all loose ends and answer all the questions I didn't have?) and because the exacting, finicky style did get tiring at times - I get the reference and/or era you're going for, but it doesn't make me love it all the time.

[Leila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything a good book should be. Funny, engaging, great characters, atmospheric setting, and a tremendous story. Loved it, did not know it was a sequel until after I had read it, checked out the first one immediately.

[hanja mcG · Rating 5 out of 5]

A slow starter - but truly mesmerizing. I expected Piet to die in many ways throughout the whole book, but it was unexpected the way he really ended. Long live forests!!!

[Sue T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book in many ways --
- For learning about a part of South African racial history that I should have known more about. In my lifetime, I knew about anti-Apartheid movements, but didn't know the background. Having the early days of the Natives Land Act as a context for the story was enriching
- Nature figured in to the story in original and sort of mystical ways. Surprisingly, the characters I cared most about were the trees.
- Loved learning about Bantu culture, traditions, belief systems
- Liked the writing style and beautiful imagery
- So suspenseful in parts!
Based on the last third of the book, I am wondering why I didn't award 5 stars. At the beginning, for some reason, I had a hard time getting going. I recommend giving it a try.

[David Kenvyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richard Mason is an extraordinary writer. For anyone who has read his previous books that will not come as a surprise. This book is special. It has come from deep within the heart of his South African soul. It is set in the rural heartland of the Eastern Cape, the land that produced Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko and so many others who gave themselves to the struggle from freedom.

You can learn about the history of Piet Barol in “History of a Pleasure Seeker” which will tell you about this life before he took ship for Cape Town, meeting his wife and some of the more peripheral characters of this story on the boat. It is not necessary to read this book to understand “Who KIlled Piet Barol?” I would recommend it because the exuberance of the writing is a sheer pleasure. But it is not necessary. All you need to know is contained within the story. Piet Barol is a furniture-maker setting off into the Eastern Cape forests in search of mahogany and other woods for a commission from a Randlord. You also do not need to know anything before reading this about South African history, because everything that you do need to know is contained within the story.

From the 1820s onwards, the Xhosa-speaking people of the Eastern Cape faced the aggression of the European colonialists, who seized their land and drove them back. In their desperation, they listened to a young prophetess, Nongqawuse, called upon her people to kill their cattle so that the ancestors would drive the colonialists from the land. Some leaders, not many, refused to do this. The bedrock of this story is that an unnamed Great Founder took his people into the depths of the Gwadana forest with their cattle to escape the madness that had been unleashed by the Xhosa in their desperation. The cattle-killing which led to the final defeat of the Xhosa took place less than 40n years before the setting of this story.

The Gwadana Forest is one of the main characters in the book. It is a real place. It is situated not that far from where I lived in Hobeni when I was volunteering for the Donald Woods Foundation. I never went there, mainly because the Cwebe Forest and the estuary of the Mbanyana River were closer, but also because it has a reputation for being dangerous, haunted, a place of ill-omen. And you do not have to be superstitious to be wary of a place where they may still be leopards and pythons. 100 years ago, when this story is set, there were leopards and pythons.

Piet Barol goes to Gwadana because he wants its wood. He persuades Luvo and Ntsina to take him there. Luvo agrees because he wants to raise the money to join the ANC delegation going to London to protest the ratification of the 1913 Native Land Act by the British Parliament. He does not know that the delegation has already gone to London and been unsuccessful. Ntsina simply wants to go home, to get away from the mines. Luvo is a Christian, schooled by missionaries. Ntsina follows the traditional beliefs of his forebears, including his grandmother Nosakhe, who is the village sangoma., which the whites (mlungu) translated into English as witch doctor, giving no respect to Xhosa spirituality whatsoever.

Richard Mason does not present Xhosa life as some kind of idyll before the meeting with white men. He is well aware that we will find some customs horrific, and he does not shy away from that. He also does not shy away from showing men like Frank Albemarle as brutal, racist and deeply afraid.

All this gives you an idea of the South African history around which the story is crafted, of that time when the land was seized from the majority so that the men were forced to work in the gold and diamond mines, and the women were driven into domestic service. It tells you about the roots of apartheid.

What is does not tell you is about the care with which the story is constructed. Nor does it give any indication of the lyrical power that Richard Mason brings to his narration. This man cannot write an ugly sentence. This man allows empathy and understanding for characters who are repulsive. There is a deep humanity here, of the kind that you can find in Tolstoy. It has the passion about his country that you find in Nadine Gordimer, or in writers such as Mandla Langa.

I am very proud to know Richard Mason and to have done what I could, as a librarian, to encourage his talent, and to bring him to the attention of the reading public. This book proves that I was right. It is extraordinary. It is a book that you should read.

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

As another reviewer noted, neither the title nor the cover represent this book very well. It's not a mystery - of the murder variety or any other.

That said, it's decent. I didn't really like any of the characters, but I believed them. They were complex and relatable. Writing from the point of views of plants and animals got old, too.

More importantly, I have White coworkers in South Africa who complain that the (majority Black) government blatantly encourages Black settlers from neighboring countries to come settle on White ranches, giving them building materials and electricity rather than enforcing property rights. Perhaps if they read this book and learned about the Natives Land Act of 1913 that left Blacks able to own only about 13% of land in South Africa, they'd better understand why Blacks are not overly sympathetic of White land rights there.

[Markie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book starts out following the interesting and complex lives of Piet and Stacy Barol. The couple met on their voyage to Cape Town South Africa. The two, immediately smitten, decide to rewrite their lives by becoming “vicomte and Viscountess” of France. Their lives are full of abundance as the couple build a famous luxury furniture store. However, soon coffers empty and Piet has many bills to pay. Stacy quickly devises a plan to get a affluent couple to dump their Russian inspired furniture pieces for the Barol’s. After her plan works out brilliantly, Piet stubbles on a hurdle... where can he find the best wood for his creations? He meets two native Africans, Luvo a clever translator and the brave Ntsina who lives in a tropical village full of scared ancestor trees. The trio go on an adventure in which Piet must contemplate society’s racism against the natives and the true price for the destruction of priceless ancient trees. The story has all the elements to make a socially conscious historical piece, but it is a tedious read. Louisa’s storyline, who supposedly had an complex relationship with Piet in the Netherlands, never goes anywhere. Shame, she is interesting and was a lesbian wearing a clueless man as a beard. There is a lot of repetitive exposition, yes we already know Bella made a big social norm blunder by entering her parents kraal, we do not need the author to continue to explain this over and over. This occurs often. The story has grand morals and interesting characters, I couldn’t stop reading when Stacy was conspiring her plan against the rich couple, but the reader will get bored reading storylines that go nowhere and lengthy exposition. I was excited when Piet, Luvo, and Ntsina were starting their adventure to Ntsina’s tropical village, but it soon becomes languid and slow. I didn’t like the magic in the book, I felt like it was out of place in the real and practical world that the author made for us. I know he wanted us to appreciate their rich customs but magic’s presence here is jarring and has little to do with the plot. I even wonder if magic was supposed to be powerful to authentic practicers like Nosakhe, why couldn’t it predict or rectify what happened to Bella? I suppose what happened to her was a symbol of nature’s cruelty? I like reading about the supernatural or magic (Game of Thrones for an example) but it didn’t seem to fit the author’s narrative. Maybe Richard Mason’s next book will be better?

[Tom Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read History of a Pleasure Seeker and The Drowning People I was eager for the release of Who Killed Piet Barol. In a departure from the drawing rooms of Amsterdam, Richard Mason transports the reader to 1914 Cape Town where Piet and his wife Stacy, posing as French aristocrats create beautiful furniture for the emerging wealthy class of Europeans arriving in South Africa. While Piet's designs and perfectionism produces exceptional furniture, his lack of business sense, a constant concern of Stacy and their extravagant life style has left the Barols in financial distress. Meanwhile in Johannesburg, Percy Shabrill, with whom Piet shared a cabin on the journey to South Africa, has struck it rich with mining ventures. For Stacy, Percy is the answer to their problems.
This is the beginning of a series of intertwining plots as Piet strives to find the best timber at the lowest cost. Meeting two natives Piet learns of a magical forest with magnificent trees where the natives of Gwandana believe the spirits of their ancestors reside. Mason develops overlapping story lines bringing the reader deep inside the forest and the lives of the characters. We see the characters change and evolve as they learn the mysteries of the forest and native culture.
This is a book to be read slowly and savored, the many twists and turns hold the reader's interest to the culminating chapters where the true merit of the characters is revealed. As to who killed Piet Barol, you will have to find out for yourself.
I recommend going to the author's website, www.richardmason.org, and watching the YouTube videos associated with the novel prior to starting the book.

[Chantal Lyons · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had a few gripping moments, but on the whole, it was a chore to read.

It's written in a "tell not show" way, feeding a glut of details about the characters without giving the reader a chance, and the several footnotes that pop up early in convey the incredibly irritating expectation on the author's part that you should have read his previous books already, or should immediately do so straight after (footnotes along the line of "to find out more about this event, read this other book"). I've never seen an author do that before and I hope I never do again. This isn't the reason I disliked the book, but it didn't help. I can't tell exactly what put me off the most, but I suspect it had largely to do with not caring about the central character of Piet Barol and his plight. Luvo and Tsina (I may have mispelled the latter name) were much more interesting, but the story and the POV focus jumped around them too much for me to ever truly connect.

The good bit - the narrative occasionally dips into the perspectives of animals and plants. And, um, that's it.

Overall, a highly forgettable book.

[Duncan Steele · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me.

Tiresome paper thin characters take part in several plots that are linked by the titular Piet Barol which are streeeeeeeeeeeeeetched out by pages and pages of the innermost thoughts of some apes and leopards.

Characters come and go into the story with their differing motivations seemingly stopping for as long as it takes another character to partake their part in the story before meeting the previous character.

When he finally does die 2 pages before the epilogue you'll feel nothing but happiness that you have finally reached the end of this nonsense.

[Kerrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great romp of a tale with memorable characters and a fantastic setting. It's a light whodunnit set in some gorgeous South African locations, and the descriptions of the areas and people are terrific fun. I kept trying to guess the exact nature of Piet Barol's grisly fate, but nothing prepared me for the dramatic finale... :)

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book, which was no surprise really, considering how much I loved the first Piet Barol book. It was entertaining, but also interesting for me, as someone who doesn't know a lot about South African's colonial and tribal past. Super interesting, educational, funny and easy to read - really recommend this book!

[Daren Kearl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mason has created a dark modern day Anansi tale on the continuing exploitation of the natural world. The mix of viewpoints, from the white Strange Ones, the native villagers and the animals and trees, kept the story vibrant and myself lost deep in the jungle of rich imagery.

[Emma Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Its taken me so long to give this a review because I read it and then read it again!

I got totally caught up in this book. I wanted to know how it ended but didn't want it to end!

Thank you for this opportunity to read this amazing book! 5/5 stars for you!

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Initially, I found this hard going in the sense that I could see the inevitable -- sad disturbing clashes between cultures with the native peoples losing out violently ... but also within the cultures and specific families. There is at least one very disturbing episode that I found very hard to get through, and past once I'd read it (and had to stop for a few days), but I picked it back up in part because I always try to finish what I read unless it is very badly written or boring, but this book is neither badly written nor boring, quite the opposite.

The viewpoint is pretty omniscient and thus we get into the minds of not only the humans in the story but also the animals in the forest. There are pretty fascinating characters as well and the stories do have narrative drive (not as fast as a mystery, for example, but the reader does want to slow down enough to take in the rich detail about how the people live, their values, their inner thoughts compared to their outer words; how the animals, insects, trees, snakes, etc. think; and the customs and history of the native people.

I found the end very satisfying with a lot of tragedy and betrayal along the way, but also joy, love, ... and divine (?) retribution. Very glad I read this book and I'll seek out more Richard Mason books.

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I had been asked for a rating while halfway through this book I would've given it 5*, no shadow of a doubt.

This is a tale of two halves.

While Mason does write beautifully about the Xhosa, their customs & beliefs, and creates wonderfully complex characters, he really does fail to deliver the final punch. I was left with a sense of disbelief and (no other word for it) anger at the death of Bela, in particular. This was a brutal anticlimax which, while I understand was fully intended, left me with an extremely bitter taste in my mouth that I couldn't shake off for the rest of the book. I finished this novel with a sense that the story only made it halfway there before taking a nosedive and crashing to its death.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book where I liked it a lot . . . until I didn’t. Mason creates very sympathetic characters and I admire his thorough research into the Xhosa community. He does examine colonialism, greed, artistry and sex in this exotic setting, but it certainly wasn’t the fanciful sexual romp of “History of a Pleasure Seeker,” where we were first introduced to Piet Barol. I was pretty engrossed for a lot of the book and, despite the title, I was hoping for a last-minute reprieve. Unfortunately, it was a bit too somber for me in the end, thus the 3-star rating. I liked it, but didn’t love it.

[Charles Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wouldn't call this novel a sequel to Mason's superb History of a Pleasure Seeker, because Who Killed Piet Barol stands on its own. I appreciated how Mason's research on the Xhosa flavored the entire novel. The narrator is beyond omniscient in the usual manner of Western novelists and can even report on the thoughts and feelings of flora and fauna in the forest. This created great interest for me.

Even though we left Piet for dead atop a high scaffold in the forest, we may discover that he turns up again in one of Mason's upcoming novels. That would be my hope, at least.

[Aisyah Samuin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not usually my kind of genre but I gave it a 3.5 stars for its story telling and unique characters. Highly gripping and infuriating towards the end. I am not sure I am okay with the ending but everyone gets what they deserve. The title is actually genius because at the last page, I couldn't stop thinking of all the various decisions made by people and its rippling consequences that lead to Piet's definite end. Great read. I don't quite care for the descriptions of coupling and other human parts though. The story could do without those vivid descriptions.

[Karen Kerschen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this reading this book.
It gave me a glimpse into an other time (early 20th century), place (South Africa) and circumstance (when the Native Land Act had [or was about to] confiscate land from the native peoples. The story pits materialistic White English and Dutch entrepreneurs against the traditional people whose perspective about their land couldn't be more different. Yet the nuanced depiction of characters prevents the story from melodrama.
Plotting interweaves with characterization and builds suspense to an ending I didn't see coming.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

So enjoyed the prequel but was initially a bit disappointed in this one. However, once the story got going, there was a fascinating glimpse into early 20 century history of South Africa. Some very vivid images of landscape. The relationships between the characters were so well written and believable. So, although this was not the book I was expecting, it was interesting especially as written from a number of perspectives - some of which are totally unexpected.