Rough and tumble life in colonial Kenya ( )

I never thought I would encounter another epic tale on par with McMurty's Lonesome Dove. I am happy to report that The White Rhino Hotel, book one chronologically in Bull's Anton Rider trilogy, is that book. With lush, descriptive details of the land, the people and the animals of colonial East Africa, this is a story that will transport you back to a place and time, like the American West of Lonesome Dove, where each settler is very much on their own to defend their property and settle in a land that seems determined to test their strength and will power to carry on. Filled with a cast that includes "an English aristocrat, his disgruntled wife, a gorgeous Welsh ambulance driver, a proud Goan dwarf, a German soldier of fortune, an American Safari hunter, and a brutal Portuguese aristocrat and his oversexed sister", this story has the characters and the backdrop for a wonderfully enthralling epic adventure filled with good guys, bad guys and the ones you are just not sure which side of the battle they are on.

If you loved Lonesome Dove as much as I did and are on the look out for another epic tale written on the same grand scale, I can highly, highly recommend The White Rhino Hotel. ( )

I don't know, I'm 2 chapters in and getting very dubious. Should I take this one on my trip? Maybe P.G. Wodehouse is safer.

High adventure set in Kenya in the days just after WWI is the best way to describe this book.

What a colorful cast of characters - from Olivio, the Goan dwarf, to Anton Rider, the young Englishman who was raised by gyspsies. Africa means something different to each of them, yet lies at the heart of each of their dreams. I was entirely caught up in following each of their fortunes.

I am definitely going to read more by this author. It was an exciting read, for sure! ( )

This was an entertaining book to read, and I have re-read it several times. I picked it up at a library book sale on a whim and was pleasantly surprised. The story held my attention and the characters were original and unique. The quality of writing I would place on the level of a well done "romance novel" (Julia Quinn and Amanda Quick being my favorite authors). It's not a romance book though, that's just what the writing quality reminded me of. It does have violence in it, but it's not on the same raw/gritty level as, let's say, James Ellroy's "L.A. Confidential," certain parts of David Guterson's "Snowing on Cedars," or Emily Devenport's "Larissa." Overall: enjoyable to read, memorable characters, great setting, good blend of adventure and drama. ( )