Book description
'First in a field of one' (Literary Review) Robert Wilson's first
novel, a tense and powerful thriller set in the sultry heat of West Africa
Benin, West Africa. Englishman Bruce Medway operates as a 'fixer' for
traders along the part of the coast they used to call the White Man's
Grave. It's a tough existence, but Medway can handle it… until he
crosses the formidable Madame Severnou. Warned off by his client, Jack
Obuasi, his energies are redirected into the search for missing expat
Steven Kershaw. Kershaw, though, is a man of mystery: trader, artist,
womanizer… and sado-masochist.
Against background rumblings of political disturbance, in the face of
official corruption, egged on by an enigmatic policeman, Medway pursues
his elusive quarry across West Africa. Is Kershaw tied to Obuasi's and
Madame Severnou's shady dealings? Is he a vicious murderer? Is he,
indeed, alive or dead? 'Unmissable… Unflinchingly imagined and
executed. No hint of competition' Literary Review
'A class act' Sunday Times
'An atmospheric and absorbing debut, Instruments of Darkness vividly
paints a credible picture of a world I know almost nothing about. Now I
feel I've been there' Val McDermid Robert Wilson spent several years
in West Africa and draws on this experience in his novels. He and his
wife now live in Portugal.
