The Honey Guide, Richard Crompton

This is a murder mystery, I don't read much crime but this one looked a bit different. It is set in Nairobi and the detective is Maasai. 'It will do for Nairobi what Ian Rankin's novels did for Edinburgh, bringing the city vividly and unforgettably to life' according to the back cover. It does seem like it was written at least partly out of a love for Nairobi and Africa. The actual murder and investigation isn't as riveting as fans of crime might hope and the writing is a little ordinary.

It did get me wondering though why so much crime writing seems to be similar. The Honey Guide describes Mollel (the detective) on the back cover as 'a 42-year-old single father whose wife has been brutally murdered. A former Massai warrior, now working for the police' How come detectives have to be tragic and/or flawed? Aren't there other ways to make policemen-protagonists compelling?

Thank you Weidenfeld and Nicolson for the proof!

I am on Is That a Fish in Your Ear? by David Bellos now which is talking about translation, enjoying it so far.