Death in Zanzibar & Death in Kenya

by M.M. Kaye

In DEATH IN ZANZIBAR, a sequel to TRADE WIND, Dany Ashton and the other guests at her stepfather's house learn that one of them is a desperate and ruthless murderer. The air of gaiety and nonchalance that opened the house party fades into growing terror, as the threat of further violence flowers in the scented air of Zanzibar.

DEATH IN KENYA unfolds in a remote and dangerous region still recovering from the Mau-Mau revolt. Victoria Caryll accepts a position at her aunt's estate, though it means having once again to see her former fiance, Eden DeBrett. It also means entering a household deep in shock from one murder--and paralyzed by the threat of more to come.

"Kaye stirs mystery with romance in these two fascinating novels." (B-O-T Editorial Review Board)

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

404 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

M. M. Kaye (Mary Margaret) was born in India and spent her early childhood and much of her early-married life there. Her family ties with the country are strong: her grandfather, father, brother and husband all served the British Raj. After India's independence, her husband, Major-General Goff Hamilton of Queen Victoria's Own Corps of Guides (the famous Indian Army regiment featured in The Far Pavilions), joined the British Army and for the next nineteen years M. M. Kaye followed the drum to Kenya, Zanzibar, Egypt, Cyprus and Germany.
M. M. Kaye won worldwide fame for The Far Pavilions, which became a worldwide best-seller on publication in 1978. This was followed by Shadow of the Moon and Trade Wind. She also wrote and illustrated The Ordinary Princess, a children's book and authored a dozen detective novels, including Death in Kashmir and Death in Zanzibar. Her autobiography has been published in three volumes, collectively entitled Share of Summer: The Sun in the Morning, Golden Afternoon, and Enchanted Evening. In March 2003, M. M. Kaye was awarded the Colonel James Tod International Award by the Maharana Mewar Foundation of Udaipur, Rajasthan, for her "contribution of permanent value reflecting the spirit and values of Mewar".

Reviews

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death in Zanzibar review HERE Read 6/25/13

Death in Kenya:

"You know," he said, "this is painfully like one of those detective novels in which just as the plot is getting littered with clues and corpses, the heroine holds up the action for three pages with a sentimental scene." (p. 350)


Death in Kenya (original title: Later Thank You Think; 1958) by M. M. Kaye takes us to the Rift Valley in a period during the latter part of the Mau Mau uprising (referred to as The Emergency by white settlers). Emily DeBrett and her grandson Eden, along with his wife Alice, have lived through an attack on Flamingo, their sprawling home in the Valley only to have a poltergeist invade their home. Emily's family treasures are broken and then her favorite dog is killed. The feeling that tension is mounting and that all of this malicious mischief is leading to something more dangerous is revealed to us through the eyes of Alice DeBrett. An English girl who has never felt at home in Kenya, Alice becomes more uncomfortable as the incidents increase in severity. Even Emily, who is tough as nails and helped repel the Mau Mau attack on her home, is feeling the strain and sends for her niece Victoria Caryll to come and help her with secretarial duties that she doesn't feel up to anymore.

Victoria was once unofficially engaged to Eden DeBrett and worries that she's made a mistake in agreeing to come. She's sure of it when she arrives and is told first thing that Eden's wife has been murdered with a Mau Mau weapon. She felt safe in coming to Kenya when Eden was married and unattainable--now she's afraid that old feelings will crop up and make an unpleasant situation unbearable in more ways than one. The police seem to be wavering between thinking this may be the start of a new revolt and believing that the murderer is someone within the DeBrett's small social circle. There are certain clues that don't add up (and which I can't reveal because more spoilers) and until they can get the math right, the killer is going to get away with it. More deaths follow and even Victoria finds herself in danger....

Kaye's novels are always terrific visions of another place and time. She sets her mysteries in locations where she and her husband have lived and the vivid descriptions ring completely true. Her mystery plots are solid and she managed to fool me completely in this one. Considering that the vital plot point has been (in some variation) important in at least three vintage mysteries I've read in the last three months, you'd think I would have picked up on it. But the way it was presented (and even repeated...yes, I was that dull-witted) this time made it seem impossible. Just remember...appearances can be (and often are) deceiving. ★★★ and 1/2.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of the review. Thanks.

[Lora · Rating 3 out of 5]

The outrageous dialogue was what kept me going as I read through this. I usually don't enjoy fifties lit, with its booze and fast talking. But the lines were just too funny.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Death in Zanzibar - 3.3 stars

Death in Kenya - 3.4 stars

I read "Death in Zanzibar" with my book club ahead of a trip to Africa - Kenya and Zanzibar and mainland Tanzania - and enjoyed it, despite the fact that it took about 80 pages for the characters to arrive in Zanzibar - it's set in the 1950's and it takes multiple flights from London to get to Zanzibar, all of which involve smoking on board (the horror! the horror!).

I started and finished "Death in Kenya" while in Africa, and author Kaye does a great job of painting colonial life in Kenya ahead of its independence in the early 1960's in the midst of this tale of murders...

Those who enjoy mysteries of the Agatha Christie variety will likely enjoy them as well, despite how dated they are, and I'm inclined to check out some of Kaye's other mysteries.

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Death in Zanzibar was interesting from the beginning. There was a murder at the very beginning of the book, and the lovely young protagonist was being framed for it. She travels to Zanzibar in disguise to visit her mother who is married a wealthy man who happens to own a mansion in Zanzibar. Someone is interested in getting his hands on the treasure map, and murders occur. The mystery kept me interested until the end of the book. Death in Kenya on the other hand was not that interesting. It wasn't until the last twenty pages of the book that I found that I could not put the book down. The lovely young protagonist was almost murdered.

[Jim Crigler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid mystery. Like all of M M Kaye’s mysteries, the central character is a young British woman who finds herself embroiled in a murder intrigue not of her own making.

But also, one of the characters is the location. This author lived in the places she wrote about, and in this one, she captures the essence of life of Britons living in Kenya's Rift Valley in the 1950s. While colonialism is out of fashion nowadays, it was simply a way of life at the time this was written, and we should not look on this story with chronological snobbery.

[Eve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two excellent whodunit books in one, what a treat!

[MerryMeerkat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star Rating: 4 Stars

 

Self purchase for Kindle.

 

Well, that was a little disappointing. I’m pretty positive I gave the first book in the series 5 stars.  The writing was well done but the plot was really weak and honestly not that much happened.  The plot does pick up at 65% in, but it doesn’t help the plot much.  That all being said, I still really enjoy this series and look forward to the third in the series (I hope) but I was let down because the first was so good. I can’t give this book less than 4 stars because it is well written but the plot needed some tuning, more stuff added.   Also, I’m annoyed I still don’t have a favorite book so far of the year.

 

These books are a series of memoirs of a woman in the victorian area who is a naturalist of Dragons.  They are set in a fictional world which I presume is loosely based off of Europe.   One thing that I found interesting, is that in that time period, womens periods were not discussed, so for it to be talked about in this memoir was definitely unique. And it was done in a way that was believable.

Overall, a good book, but the first was much better. PS I really want there to be more in the series!!!

"

[Patricia Gulley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't care much for the protag in this one. Too young, and I can't imagine a man at the age and experience of 'the hero' being interested. Oh well, times have changed. The airline progress from London to Zanzibar was very interesting. Moving on to Kenya.

[Betsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in December as some brain candy--gripping like many mysteries, exotic from the setting (Kenya), and a little romance thrown in. Delightful if you're looking for some escapism.

[Lynne]

M M Kaye - exotic foreign locales - what more need be said?

[Gayle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sequel to a book I liked very much, Trade Wind, this really wasn't that good. I finished it anyway just for closure.