What do you think?
Rate this book
Beyond the Cape
BLOOMING VALLEYS, BLEEDING EARTH
Nothing has been able to draw Captain Pieter Strauss home to South Africa's Elgin Valley. Since an argument sixteen years ago, he and his father Zef have hardly spoken a word to each other. Then the body of a young activist who had declared war on the white farmers is found in the old water reservoir on Strauss' farm. The local police have already arrested a suspect: Zef Strauss. Pieter rushes to his father's aid from Cape Town, even though he himself is not convinced of his father's innocence. He quickly gets caught in a web of old conflicts, desperate riots and bloody murders.
The second case for Captain Pieter at the Cape of Lost Hope.
Nothing has been able to draw Captain Pieter Strauss home to South Africa's Elgin Valley. Since an argument sixteen years ago, he and his father Zef have hardly spoken a word to each other. Then the body of a young activist who had declared war on the white farmers is found in the old water reservoir on Strauss' farm. The local police have already arrested a suspect: Zef Strauss. Pieter rushes to his father's aid from Cape Town, even though he himself is not convinced of his father's innocence. He quickly gets caught in a web of old conflicts, desperate riots and bloody murders.
The second case for Captain Pieter at the Cape of Lost Hope.
298 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 25, 2022
4 people want to read
About the author
Joyce Summer
25 books5 followersBorn in the Nibelungen city of Worms, Joyce Summer has been fascinated by stories and legends since childhood. What could be more natural than to devote herself entirely to writing at some point? After years of working as a manager in various banks and large corporations, she knows enough about politics and intrigue: so it was not difficult for Joyce to leave this life behind and go on a murder hunt with paper and pen. "In my previous job, you had to be prepared for someone to stick a knife in your back. In that case, I'd rather live out my own murderous desires and fantasies in beautiful crime novels - and I can give my readers a treat as well."
Her love for the island of eternal spring, Madeira, brought her to write her first crime novel in 2015. The proximity to water did it to her. Be it in their books, which always have scenes on the water, or in real life, kayaking.
Her love for the island of eternal spring, Madeira, brought her to write her first crime novel in 2015. The proximity to water did it to her. Be it in their books, which always have scenes on the water, or in real life, kayaking.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 27, 2023
Special thanks to the author for a free, electronic copy of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Joyce Summer brings Captain Pietr Strauss back in her second novel, Beyond the Cape, the second novel in her “Peter Strauss” police procedural series.
A young, black woman is found murdered on a white farmers property, which only increases the racial tension in the south African town of Elgin Valley. When Captain Pietr Strauss finds out the white farmer is his father, everyone starts to point fingers and as tensions mount even Pietr himself starts to question the role his father played.
Although it is unnecessary to read the first novel, it is highly encouraged as the characters make this novel what it is, and having the backstory of each one will definitely add to that enjoyment. The humorous commentary between Pietr and his colleagues is made more amusing when you know the specifics of their relationship. Summers delves more into Pietr’s family history in this novel, including examining the complicated relationship between Pietr and his father, which I found helped even further to understand Pietr’s perspective on his job, relationships, and life in general. He is an easy character to root for, an affable but serious police captain with a love of rugby and a quest to uncover the truth.
There was some awkward wording and phrasing, especially during conversations, which I found in Summers first novel too, but it was not enough to turn me away. I attributed this in her last work as a language translation issue, and I’m going to assume this was the case again here. As this is a police procedural, expect investigative language, but it is all digestible and generalizable. Summers is able to reach readers from all corners of the globe through her well-developed characters and page-turning plot.
Once again, Summers uses the beautiful South African setting which is unique and brilliantly immersive. Summers uses the characters’ love of rugby to highlight the importance it plays in South African culture, giving proper respect to her home country, while at the same time not drowning the plot in rugby lingo. The chapters are short, making “Beyond the Cape” a quick read, and the ending, although satisfying, leaves the reader wanting more of Pietr and his crew. I hope to see more from Summer and Pietr again soon!
Joyce Summer brings Captain Pietr Strauss back in her second novel, Beyond the Cape, the second novel in her “Peter Strauss” police procedural series.
A young, black woman is found murdered on a white farmers property, which only increases the racial tension in the south African town of Elgin Valley. When Captain Pietr Strauss finds out the white farmer is his father, everyone starts to point fingers and as tensions mount even Pietr himself starts to question the role his father played.
Although it is unnecessary to read the first novel, it is highly encouraged as the characters make this novel what it is, and having the backstory of each one will definitely add to that enjoyment. The humorous commentary between Pietr and his colleagues is made more amusing when you know the specifics of their relationship. Summers delves more into Pietr’s family history in this novel, including examining the complicated relationship between Pietr and his father, which I found helped even further to understand Pietr’s perspective on his job, relationships, and life in general. He is an easy character to root for, an affable but serious police captain with a love of rugby and a quest to uncover the truth.
There was some awkward wording and phrasing, especially during conversations, which I found in Summers first novel too, but it was not enough to turn me away. I attributed this in her last work as a language translation issue, and I’m going to assume this was the case again here. As this is a police procedural, expect investigative language, but it is all digestible and generalizable. Summers is able to reach readers from all corners of the globe through her well-developed characters and page-turning plot.
Once again, Summers uses the beautiful South African setting which is unique and brilliantly immersive. Summers uses the characters’ love of rugby to highlight the importance it plays in South African culture, giving proper respect to her home country, while at the same time not drowning the plot in rugby lingo. The chapters are short, making “Beyond the Cape” a quick read, and the ending, although satisfying, leaves the reader wanting more of Pietr and his crew. I hope to see more from Summer and Pietr again soon!
Read
January 29, 2023Beyond the Cape is the second book in the Pieter Strauss Mystery series and takes the reader back to sunny South Africa for Pieter to solve another murder.
Summer's sets the scene in the Cape where Pieter heads back to his father's farm where a shocking discovery has been made. Following leads to solve the murder, Pieter is met with more than he bargained for.
I didn't read the first book in the series but found it easy to get into the story. A list of characters is included at the start of the book which helps the reader keep track of each character's part in the story. This is not my typical read but I was curious to read it since it is set in South Africa. There are some rugby references for sports fans as well as a list of African terms. This is a quick read and I think readers who enjoy murder mysteries might find this interesting.
Thank you to the author for gifting me an electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.
Summer's sets the scene in the Cape where Pieter heads back to his father's farm where a shocking discovery has been made. Following leads to solve the murder, Pieter is met with more than he bargained for.
I didn't read the first book in the series but found it easy to get into the story. A list of characters is included at the start of the book which helps the reader keep track of each character's part in the story. This is not my typical read but I was curious to read it since it is set in South Africa. There are some rugby references for sports fans as well as a list of African terms. This is a quick read and I think readers who enjoy murder mysteries might find this interesting.
Thank you to the author for gifting me an electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.
June 1, 2022
Our favourite Detective Pieter Strauss is back with another mystery in the beautiful Cape. A house robbery and murder of a local farmer in the Stellenbosch area brings the Hawks on the case. Is this another farm murder or is there more to the story? Working together with Clyde, Pieter must figure out the motive for this prominent farmer’s execution style death to ultimately catch the perpetrator. The local farm watch is all eager to help, but are all their motives as pure as they claim?
Pieter needed to go to his hometown in Elgin when a woman, Tansy, went missing that he knew since childhood. Her whole family worked on the Strauss farm all their lives, and everyone is shocked by the whole affair. Leaving Clyde in charge of the Stellenbosch murder, Pieter goes to Elgin with his Hawks and rugby friend, Jan, who agree to go undercover as a farmworker to help solve the case.
Going back to the farm where he grew up, Pieter must face his father with whom he’s got a strained relationship. Seeing all his old friends, hearing the stories of landgrabs, farm murders and robberies, Pieter realise there’s more to the disappearance of Tansy, who was known to be an EFF supporter in the last few months before she vanished.
Pieter needs to use all his cunning, resources, and contacts to solve these confusing and baffling cases through wrongful arrests, politics, family drama and false leads.
My thoughts: I loved reading a book that is set in the area where I grew up – it felt like I was there and could picture the story unfold in my mind. I liked this book more than the previous one and I couldn’t put it down!
Pieter needed to go to his hometown in Elgin when a woman, Tansy, went missing that he knew since childhood. Her whole family worked on the Strauss farm all their lives, and everyone is shocked by the whole affair. Leaving Clyde in charge of the Stellenbosch murder, Pieter goes to Elgin with his Hawks and rugby friend, Jan, who agree to go undercover as a farmworker to help solve the case.
Going back to the farm where he grew up, Pieter must face his father with whom he’s got a strained relationship. Seeing all his old friends, hearing the stories of landgrabs, farm murders and robberies, Pieter realise there’s more to the disappearance of Tansy, who was known to be an EFF supporter in the last few months before she vanished.
Pieter needs to use all his cunning, resources, and contacts to solve these confusing and baffling cases through wrongful arrests, politics, family drama and false leads.
My thoughts: I loved reading a book that is set in the area where I grew up – it felt like I was there and could picture the story unfold in my mind. I liked this book more than the previous one and I couldn’t put it down!
September 19, 2023
A robbery-homicide at a vineyard and a missing persons case hit too close to home for Captain Pieter Strauss.
This tale is a mix of crime, rugby, and political/racial tension around land rights. Former colleague Emma pops up a couple times, adding a little romantic tension to the story.
For the first third of the book, this felt more like a cozy mystery than an intense detective novel. The details of the case were minimal and slow to develop compared to book one. There was more time spent on the interactions of the members of the team, the other police stations, Pieter’s family, and the politics & race relations.
But the pace and tension of the case picked up before the midpoint and I was fully engaged until the end.
Just like in book one, there were enough clues to help me guess the identity of the culprit, but it wasn’t obvious so I kept turning pages with interest until the big reveal.
eBook provided by author. Opinions are my own.
This tale is a mix of crime, rugby, and political/racial tension around land rights. Former colleague Emma pops up a couple times, adding a little romantic tension to the story.
For the first third of the book, this felt more like a cozy mystery than an intense detective novel. The details of the case were minimal and slow to develop compared to book one. There was more time spent on the interactions of the members of the team, the other police stations, Pieter’s family, and the politics & race relations.
But the pace and tension of the case picked up before the midpoint and I was fully engaged until the end.
Just like in book one, there were enough clues to help me guess the identity of the culprit, but it wasn’t obvious so I kept turning pages with interest until the big reveal.
eBook provided by author. Opinions are my own.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews