Heart of the Hunter

‘Out of post-apartheid South Africa comes a thriller good enough to nip at the heels of le Carré … Wonderful setting; rich, colourful cast, headed by a valiant/vulnerable protagonist who make empathy easy … Fans of the [suspense novel] genre won’t want to miss Meyer’s US debut.’

Extras - click here

- Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews

'So authentic is Thobela Mpayipheli that South African thriller junkies, who have been waiting a long time for an enthralling read to come out of this country, will fall in love with the gentle Xhosa giant.'

- Sunday Times (South Africa)

Patrick Anderson in the Washington Post:

Heart of the Hunter "Heart of the Hunter" is most obviously a rip-roaring adventure, a portrait of spy-world duplicity and a look at South Africa's post-apartheid politics. But this thriller is also an ambitious attempt to create a mythic hero.

Thobela works admirably as a character, but ultimately he is a symbol of all that is strong and long-suffering in Africa and Africans.

Meyer is trying to show us the soul of a continent, and to a considerable degree he succeeds.

And more ...

  • "Deon Meyer... gives us an exciting and oddly hopeful look into what feels, smells, and sounds very much like life in today's South Africa ...

    HEART OF THE HUNTER is the dark, explosive side of Alexander McCall Smith's Botswana books, as full of love for the vast beauty of the country but also riddled by the anger of South Africa's recent racial and political struggles...

    - Chicago Tribune

  • Deon Meyer's American debut novel, HEART OF THE HUNTER, is a first-rate thriller, worthy to be on a bestseller list.

    - Judy Gigstad on Bookreporter.com

  • Heart of the Hunter', a brilliant American debut by Afrikaans writer Deon Meyer, uses political intrigue as the fuel for a fast-paced crime thriller.

    - The Times-Picayune

  • This is a thriller of massive proportions. The cast of interesting and conflicted characters are always easy to identify. Within the structure of a conventional suspense novel, Deon Myer has inserted a twisty mystery that enhances and encourages the enjoyment readers will find here.

    - Carl Brookins, Reviewing the evidence

  • "THE HEART OF THE HUNTER is a brilliant book. Deon Meyer does an excellent job of developing a whole range of characters who are affected by the changes in South Africa in different ways. And Thobela, a giant of a man in search of redemption, is a wonderful hero."

    - Michael Ridpath, author of FREE TO TRADE and THE PREDATOR

  • "This guy is really good. Deon Meyer hooked me with this one right from the start. Heart of the Hunter is a thriller with some weight attached, and that is a rare find."

    - Michael Connelly, author of The Narrows

  • South African thriller writer Deon Meyer pits a former assassin/freedom fighter against, South Africa's PIU (Presidential Intelligence Unit) when six foot five Thobela "Tiny" Mpayipheli sets out to save the life of a fellow freedom fighter being held hostage.

    The daughter of the hostage pleads with Tiny, now living a quiet domestic life, to help save her father's life by taking an incriminating computer disc to those holding him. Problem is the PIU doesn't know who it's dealing with. Tiny's old Stasi and KGB trained ways kick in as he races across the South African landscape on a stolen BMW Motorcycle to the rendezvous point, pursued by several interested and hostile forces.

    This post apartheid and 9/11 thriller is a thriller readers' thriller. Meyer has captured it all, setting, character, politics, good guys and bad guys and wrapped it up in a highly readable fictional entertainment. Buy the book!

    - Only Mystery Books at www.onlymysterybooks.com