Detective Kubu
7 primary works
Book 1
Book 2
Book 2
'Impressive . . . The intricate plotting, a grisly sense of realism and numerous topical motifs make this a compulsively readable novel' Publishers Weekly
The second in the fantastic crime series, featuring connoisseur Assistant Superintendant David 'Kubu' Bengu of the Botswana Police Force.
When a mutilated body is found at a tourist camp in northern Botswana, the corpse displays the classic signs of a revenge killing. But when fingerprints are analysed Detective 'Kubu' makes a shocking discovery: the victim is already dead. He was slain in the Rhodesian war thirty ago.
Kubu soon realises that nothing at the camp is as it seems. And as the guests are picked off one by one, time is running out. With rumours of horrifying war crimes, the scent of a drug-smuggling trail and mounting pressure from his superiors to contend with, Kubu forgets there is one door left unguarded - his own. And as he sets a trap to find a murderer, the hunters are closing in on him...
'I'm fascinated by Africa and now I really want to visit Botswana. Through this book, I've come to love the people there, and fall totally for the main character' Louise Penny, New York Times bestselling author of the Chief Inspector Gamache novels
'Highly recommend' Library Journal
Readers around the world are loving A Deadly Trade:
'A wonderful book' Amazon reviewer
'Kubu is a delightful character' Amazon reviewer
'Michael Stanley is well on his way to establishing himself in the international crime thriller scene' Amazon reviewer
Book 3
'Death of the Mantis, by Michael Stanley is the best book I've read in a very long time' Louise Penny, New York Times bestselling author of the Chief Inspector Gamache novel
The third novel in the fantastic Detective 'Kubu' Bengu crime series, set in the southern Kalahari area of Botswana - a place full of buried lost cities, incredible hidden wealth, ancient gods and, for thousands of years, home to the nomadic Bushmen.
When a fractious ranger named Monzo is found dead, fallen into a donga - a dry ravine - surrounded by three Bushmen, the local police arrest the nomads. Detective 'Kubu' Bengu is on the case, which reunites him with his old school friend Khumanego, a Bushman and now an advocate for his people.
Khumanego believes the arrests are motivated by racist antagonism from the police, as the Bushmen are claiming that they were at the murder scene because they were trying to help.
Soon after Monzo's death, Detective 'Kubu' learns of another case involving two botany students on their way back from a specimen-collecting trip but who were later found dead, seemingly poisoned, at a campground. Could the deaths be connected?
'Kubu is the African Columbo' Entertainment Weekly
'Death of the Mantis takes us places we've never been, thrills and informs us, and leaves us changed by the experience. I loved this book' Timothy Hallinan, author of The Queen of Patpong and A Nail Through the Heart
Readers around the world LOVE Death of the Mantis:
'Original premise and truly interesting characters, I loved this book *****' Amazon reviewer
'All of the books in the Detective Kubu series are excellent and worth reading *****' Amazon Reviewer
'As expected, an excellent read which I thoroughly recommend *****' Amazon reviewer
Book 4
‘A wonderful, original voice – McCall Smith with a dark edge and even darker underbelly’ Peter James
‘The perfect combination of “I don’t want it to end” and “I can’t put it down”. Great African crime fiction’ Deon Meyer
‘My favourite writing duo since Ellery Queen’ Ragnar Jónasson
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A young girl goes missing after getting into a car with a mysterious man. Soon after, a second girl disappears, and her devastated father, Witness, sets out to seek revenge.
As the trail goes cold, Samantha Khama – new recruit to the Botswana Criminal Investigation Department – suspects the girl was killed for muti, the traditional African medicine usually derived from plants, sometimes animals, and, recently and most chillingly, human parts.
When the investigation gets personal, Samantha enlists opera-loving wine connoisseur Assistant Superintendent David ‘Kubu’ Bengu to help her dig into the past.
As they begin to discover a pattern to the disappearances, there is another victim, and Kubu and Samantha are thrust into a harrowing race to stop a serial killer who has only one thing in mind…
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'A fascinating police procedural … the most complex book in this series. Besides being an intricate crime puzzle that Kubu and his team must untangle, it also looks at societal issues’ St Paul Pioneer Press
‘Compelling and deceptively written...’ New York Journal of Books
‘Richly atmospheric … a gritty depiction of corruption and deception’ Publishers Weekly
‘Under the African sun, Michael Stanley’s Detective Kubu investigates crimes as dark as the darkest of Nordic Noir. Call it Sunshine Noir, if you will – a must read’ Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
‘Intelligent, dark and compelling – among the best of today’s crime fiction’ Quentin Bates
Book 5
Book 6
An autopsy reveals that, although he's clearly very old, his internal organs are puzzlingly young. What's more, an old bullet is lodged in one of his muscles ... but where is the entry wound?
When the body is stolen from the morgue and a local witch doctor is reported missing, Detective 'Kubu' Bengu gets involved. Kubu and his brilliant young colleague, Detective Samantha Khama, follow the twisting trail through a confusion of rhino-horn smugglers, foreign gangsters and drugs manufacturers. And the deeper they dig, the wider and more dangerous the case becomes...
A fresh, new slice of 'Sunshine Noir', Dying to Live is a classic tale of greed, corruption and ruthless thuggery, set in one of the world's most beautiful landscapes, and featuring one of crime fiction's most endearing and humane heroes.
'Richly atmospheric ... a gritty depiction of corruption and deception' Publishers Weekly
'Detective David "Kubu" Bengu is a wonderful creation, complex and beguiling. Compelling and deceptively written' New York Journal of Books
'A wonderful, original voice - McCall Smith with a dark edge and even darker underbelly' Peter James
'My favourite writing duo since Ellery Queen' Ragnar Jonasson