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Written by celebrated author M. M. Kaye, Death in Zanzibar is a wonderfully evocative mystery ... Dany Ashton is invited to vacation at her stepfather's house in Zanzibar, but even before her airplane takes off there is a stolen passport, a midnight intruder--and murder. In Zanzibar, the family house is Kivulimi, the mysterious "House of Shade," where Dany and the rest of the guests learn that one of them is a desperate killer. The air of freedom and nonchalance that opened the house party show more fades into growing terror, as the threat of further violence flowers in the scented air of Zanzibar. Richly evocative, Death in Zanzibar will charm long-time fans and introduce new ones to this celebrated writer. show lessTags
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If you like old-fashioned mystery and romance set in an exotic locale, this is a very fun read. M.M. Kaye wrote several of these atmospheric mystery romance novels which always incorporated some exotic setting she had been to as she and her husband moved all over the world. In the forward she writes that it is a Zanzibar which no longer exists, but one she saw and wanted to share before memories of it had faded into the sunset. While Death in Cyprus, which I highly recommend, is probably her best and most satisfying mystery, this one might have the most charm, and is a sentimental favorite.
Death in Zanzibar has a light and entertaining feel to the overall story and a very likable heroine in Dany Ashton. The characters are colorful and show more well-defined and blend perfectly with the time period. Death in Zanzibar very much feels like it belongs in another era. Lash is a young man-about-town, when young men-about-town were in every mystery. He slowly comes into his own while helping Dany perpetrate a ruse during their trip to Zanzibar and the House of Shade. The mystery of why her hotel room was broken into, and her passport stolen, deepens when a murder occurs. And then there is more.
Dany is sweet and endearing as she shows old-fashioned bravado during the course of the mystery. She will emerge from her mother's shadow and come into her own just as Lash does. There is, of course, an innocent and growing romance between the two. The reader knows how this will end long before they do, which is part of the old -fashioned charm of the read. Kaye makes good use of the exotic locale as we see it through the eyes of her heroine, who is also seeing it for the first time. While the beauty of the descriptive prose doesn’t reach the level of Death in Cyprus, it’s still quite lovely — this is M.M. Kaye, after all — and filled with charm because we as readers we are seeing it through the eyes of another.
Death in Zanzibar, while a bit lean, is a very fun and entertainingly old-fashioned mystery, with the values and mores of a bygone era. Perhaps the best way to describe it would be to say it has much the same feel as watching one of those early 1930s mystery films set in an exotic locale; the kind you catch late at night when you can't sleep and enjoy all the more because it was a pleasant surprise. All of Kaye's mysteries fit this bill and this one is perhaps my sentimental favorite. If you're searching for something intricate and complex, this isn't for you, but if you like your mystery and romance firmly ensconced on the old-fashioned side, you will enjoy this greatly, as I did. A fun summer read. show less
Death in Zanzibar has a light and entertaining feel to the overall story and a very likable heroine in Dany Ashton. The characters are colorful and show more well-defined and blend perfectly with the time period. Death in Zanzibar very much feels like it belongs in another era. Lash is a young man-about-town, when young men-about-town were in every mystery. He slowly comes into his own while helping Dany perpetrate a ruse during their trip to Zanzibar and the House of Shade. The mystery of why her hotel room was broken into, and her passport stolen, deepens when a murder occurs. And then there is more.
Dany is sweet and endearing as she shows old-fashioned bravado during the course of the mystery. She will emerge from her mother's shadow and come into her own just as Lash does. There is, of course, an innocent and growing romance between the two. The reader knows how this will end long before they do, which is part of the old -fashioned charm of the read. Kaye makes good use of the exotic locale as we see it through the eyes of her heroine, who is also seeing it for the first time. While the beauty of the descriptive prose doesn’t reach the level of Death in Cyprus, it’s still quite lovely — this is M.M. Kaye, after all — and filled with charm because we as readers we are seeing it through the eyes of another.
Death in Zanzibar, while a bit lean, is a very fun and entertainingly old-fashioned mystery, with the values and mores of a bygone era. Perhaps the best way to describe it would be to say it has much the same feel as watching one of those early 1930s mystery films set in an exotic locale; the kind you catch late at night when you can't sleep and enjoy all the more because it was a pleasant surprise. All of Kaye's mysteries fit this bill and this one is perhaps my sentimental favorite. If you're searching for something intricate and complex, this isn't for you, but if you like your mystery and romance firmly ensconced on the old-fashioned side, you will enjoy this greatly, as I did. A fun summer read. show less
Dany Ashton has lived a fairly sheltered life with her Aunt Henrietta in rural England, but she dreams of travel and adventure. So when she has the opportunity to visit her mother and stepfather in Zanzibar, she jumps at the chance. However, before she even gets on the plane to leave England, mysterious events conspire to throw obstacles in her path. Her room is searched, her passport is stolen -- and the family solicitor, whom Dany had visited earlier in the day to pick up a document for her stepfather, is murdered. Dany nevertheless manages to get to Zanzibar, but more sinister occurrences follow her. When a member of her stepfather's house party dies, seemingly by accident, Dany can't help suspecting that it might be murder -- and show more that her own life may also be in danger.
I have really enjoyed all the "Death in..." books, but I think this one is my new favorite. I liked that there isn't a lot of tedious exposition at the beginning of the story; rather, Dany is immediately plunged into a mystery and a possible romance, so I was paying attention right away. It was also interesting to read about 1950s Zanzibar from a British perspective. Kaye describes it as an idyllic region fairly removed from politics, yet communism and Cold War ideology are beginning to creep into the area. Kaye is also fairly evenhanded in her portrayal of the native Africans, though certain turns of phrase are harsh on 21st-century ears. If you like the basic premise of "girl travels to exotic location and becomes embroiled in danger and romance," you'll probably enjoy this book. Recommended, especially for armchair travelers! show less
I have really enjoyed all the "Death in..." books, but I think this one is my new favorite. I liked that there isn't a lot of tedious exposition at the beginning of the story; rather, Dany is immediately plunged into a mystery and a possible romance, so I was paying attention right away. It was also interesting to read about 1950s Zanzibar from a British perspective. Kaye describes it as an idyllic region fairly removed from politics, yet communism and Cold War ideology are beginning to creep into the area. Kaye is also fairly evenhanded in her portrayal of the native Africans, though certain turns of phrase are harsh on 21st-century ears. If you like the basic premise of "girl travels to exotic location and becomes embroiled in danger and romance," you'll probably enjoy this book. Recommended, especially for armchair travelers! show less
A great old-fashioned whodunnit in the style of Christie. The plot is a bit far-fetched but the resulting mystery is very entertaining and there is even a dash of romance. In deciding who committed the crimes, I changed my mind so often that I picked just about all the characters at one point or another. However, that just meant that I was right if only for a short time. I enjoyed the descriptions of Zanzibar, now a region of Tanzania. I loved the polite language and hammy plot of a mystery written in 1959 when people played music on a gramophone, women wore stockings even in hot climates, and the journey from London to Nairobi by air took more that 24 hours.
The author had a longing to see Zanzibar after hearing a popular song in the show more fifties - said to be "Stowaway" by Barbara Lyon - that has the refrain "Then I'll go sailing far - off to Zanzibar". She eventually managed to visit the island when her husband's regiment was diverted to Kenya and she joined him there. All of M.M. Kaye's books were set in places she visited or lived in as an army wife. show less
The author had a longing to see Zanzibar after hearing a popular song in the show more fifties - said to be "Stowaway" by Barbara Lyon - that has the refrain "Then I'll go sailing far - off to Zanzibar". She eventually managed to visit the island when her husband's regiment was diverted to Kenya and she joined him there. All of M.M. Kaye's books were set in places she visited or lived in as an army wife. show less
What a hot mess! Was it a political thriller, murder mystery, or romance? All badly mostly. The two main would-be detectives were immensely dense and the remaining characters were so poorly drawn that it was hard to keep track of anyone. The plot twists made little to no sense and it just meandered through various exotic locales until it came to an utterly implausible and rather idiotic finish. I've got a few more of the the Death in... series and now I'm wondering if it is worth plowing through them.
The beginning was bumpy but a fun read when you're in the mood for a 50s-era romantic suspense mystery. It has lots of rich people, colonialism, brash Americans, plucky young woman in a bind, communists - all set in foreign airports and an exotic island (I'm imagining Grace Kelly and William Holden in the movie...)
A novel of young love and murder written before the time of political correctness. With this group of misfits, this book could be an ad for any type of alcoholic drink. We are teased by the naïve love of our teen age heroine, which turns out to be a red herring. She eventually falls for the other young man, who seems to face the possibility of becoming an alcoholic.
Do you love mysteries? Read this — the dialogue is deliciously snappy, the plot is unexpectedly twisty, the characters utterly likeable. I sped through it in less than two days and promptly put more MM Kaye on my TBR list!
Read my full review here: http://letseatgrandpa.com/2011/06/10/may-snippet-book-reviews-a-bit-late/
Read my full review here: http://letseatgrandpa.com/2011/06/10/may-snippet-book-reviews-a-bit-late/
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30+ Works 9,002 Members
M. M. Kaye was born on August 21, 1908 in Simla, India to British parents. She wrote numerous books during her lifetime including Death Walks in Kashmir, Later than You Think, Shadow of the Moon, Trade Wind, The Far Pavilions, The Sun in the Morning, Golden Afternoon, and Enchanted Evening. She also wrote and illustrated children's books including show more The Ordinary Princess. She died on January 29, 2004 at the age of 95. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Death in Zanzibar
- Original title
- The House of Shade
- Alternate titles*
- Tod in Sansibar
- Original publication date
- 1959
- People/Characters
- Dany Ashton
- Important places
- Africa; Srinagar, Kashmir; Zanzibar
- Epigraph
- Who has not heard of the vale of Cashmere...? Thomas Moore, Lalla-Rookh
- Dedication
- To
the Zanzibar I knew.
With love.
For GOFF
and the delectable valley.
With all my love - First words
- Afterwards Sarah could never be quite sure whether it was the moonlight or that soft, furtive sound that had awakened her.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)The two figures, the black and the silver, drew together and became part of the moonlight and the shadows: so still that a heron, alighting in the shallow water at the lake's edge, remained within a yard of them, pricking between the lily leaves, until Lager, returning froma foraging expedition beyond the chenat tree, sent it flapping out aross the moonlit Dal.
- Original language*
- Englisch
- Disambiguation notice
- Originally published as House of Shade.
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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