Tony Park

The book, like the man, is a little rough around the edges; had it been polished a bit more I don't think it would adequately have represented a knockabout character.

I enjoyed the story, it has the feel of a bit of beer 'n bullshit down the pub reminiscing with a few mates about when this happened and how we did that, but you can tell there is a genuine affection for the dogs he works with and a real camaraderie with the friends he made. You get a sense of the action in Afghanistan without show more the non-stop, bullet by bullet account that you find in some memoirs. There is also a noticeable evolution in the author from impulsive kid to mature family man, not quite settled yet, but well on the way.

I would recommend War Dogs for the slightly different account it gives of the war in Afghanistan. show less

The Delta is the 7th fiction novel by Tony Park. Once again set in Africa, the main character this time is a female mercenary, Sonja Kurtz. After an attempt to assassinate the President of Zimbabwe goes wrong, Sonja escapes to Botswana. There she intends to look up her first love, Stirling Smith, at the safari lodge he still manages. Against her better judgement, her boss, Martin Steele, involves her in a plot to help the Caprivi Liberation Army and to blow up the newly-constructed Okavango show more Dam which appears to be destroying the Okavango Delta. Throw into the mix American actor “Coyote” Sam Chapman and his World Wildlife film crew, and you have a great story.I was interested to read and review this book for several reasons. I have read other books by Park, but the main characters have always been men, so I was interested to see how he dealt with a woman in that spot (very well!). I was also interested because it was set in Botswana. I am a very big fan of a particular series by a male author, also set in Botswana, where the main character is also a woman. Alexander McCall-Smith manages to portray Precious Ramotswe and Grace Makutsi so well in his No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series that readers could be forgiven for thinking the author was female. This book, however, is a world away from that series! Park’s dialogue is authentic, the descriptions are highly evocative, the plot has plenty of twists and turns, and the characters are quite believable, although many are not what they first seem. There are some delightful turns of phrase. Park even manages to have the reader sympathetic with a hired assassin! There is lots of action, quite a bit of violence and an exciting finish with a laugh-out-loud last line. Park’s first-hand knowledge of Africa is evident in every line of text and his love of the African landscape and many of her people is very obvious. Unlike James Patterson’s superficial offering, “Cross Country”, Tony Park’s books make you want to go to Africa to experience it for yourself. I am looking forward to his next work, African Dawn. show less

The Delta is the 7th fiction novel by Tony Park. Once again set in Africa, the main character this time is a female mercenary, Sonja Kurtz. After an attempt to assassinate the President of Zimbabwe goes wrong, Sonja escapes to Botswana. There she intends to look up her first love, Stirling Smith, at the safari lodge he still manages. Against her better judgement, her boss, Martin Steele, involves her in a plot to help the Caprivi Liberation Army and to blow up the newly-constructed Okavango show more Dam which appears to be destroying the Okavango Delta. Throw into the mix American actor “Coyote” Sam Chapman and his World Wildlife film crew, and you have a great story.I was interested to read and review this book for several reasons. I have read other books by Park, but the main characters have always been men, so I was interested to see how he dealt with a woman in that spot (very well!). I was also interested because it was set in Botswana. I am a very big fan of a particular series by a male author, also set in Botswana, where the main character is also a woman. Alexander McCall-Smith manages to portray Precious Ramotswe and Grace Makutsi so well in his No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series that readers could be forgiven for thinking the author was female. This book, however, is a world away from that series! Park’s dialogue is authentic, the descriptions are highly evocative, the plot has plenty of twists and turns, and the characters are quite believable, although many are not what they first seem. There are some delightful turns of phrase. Park even manages to have the reader sympathetic with a hired assassin! There is lots of action, quite a bit of violence and an exciting finish with a laugh-out-loud last line. Park’s first-hand knowledge of Africa is evident in every line of text and his love of the African landscape and many of her people is very obvious. Unlike James Patterson’s superficial offering, “Cross Country”, Tony Park’s books make you want to go to Africa to experience it for yourself. I am looking forward to his next work, African Dawn. show less

The cover art might scream ‘trashy dick fic!’ but don’t be mislead – Silent Predator is both well-constructed and exciting, and while author Tony Park is an Australian, he spends half the year in Africa becoming, like every convert, an expert on his new passion.

The book opens in London with Detective Sergeant Tom Furey hot on the trail of suspected terrorists but he is soon sent to South Africa to protect Britain’s Assistant Minister of Defence Robert Greeves, a notorious show more Africaphile; their stay at a private safari lodge is cut short though when Greeves is kidnapped.

Although he is suspended, Furey – together with his beautiful blonde counterpart Inspector Sannie van Rensburg – is soon in hot pursuit, following the trail through the Kruger Park then over the border into Mozambique and right to the shores of the Indian Ocean., ending with a dramatic twist on an island in Lake Malawi.

The story includes terrorism, murder, paedophilia, people trafficking, missing persons, kidnapping, betrayal, romance, friendship and courage: it’s not great literature but it is a great read, dominated by the enticing and seductive lead character, Africa herself show less