Present Tense by Natalie Conyer is a fast-paced mystery crime thriller set in Cape Town, South Africa.
Veteran cop, Schalk Lourens, is at the murder scene of Piet Pieterse, who has been executed in a violent fashion.
Pieterse was formerly a detective with the Special Branch during the apartheid era. He was also Schalk Lourens’ old boss.
As Lourens is filming the crime scene, he remembers something Pieterse taught him years ago. “Keep a record. Do it yourself, boykie, every time. That way you can be sure. Cover your arse. Don’t trust any of them.”
Those very wise words certainly apply to this case.
With an election looming, the current Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nkosi, wants the case closed quickly, with Lourens to only report to him. People are hoping that charismatic ANC candidate General Gideon Radebe will win and put an end to the violence and unrest.
On the night of the murder, Pieterse’s American wife is away and the staff have been given the night off. The mystery is who was Pieterse expecting to visit him and why.
As Lourens investigates Pieterse’s past and present he finds a number of suspects and has put himself in incredible danger. Who to trust has become an issue as it appears that someone in power will do anything to stop the truth from being exposed.
Once Lourens has all the pieces of the puzzle his big problem is how to expose the murderer without getting himself killed in the process.
We are taken on a fast action-packed, sometimes violent journey as the present and the past connect to the rather surprising ending.
Schalk Lourens is an interesting and likeable character who has issues in his own present and past.
The book is easy to read with the chapters titled for each day of the investigation. There is a glossary at the end of the book to help with the Afrikaans terminology, which is used to present the characters in an authentic way.
I enjoyed the book, as it was quite thought-provoking and found the racial dynamics and South African politics quite interesting. This is the first in a series for Schalk Lourens, and I am looking forward to the sequel which is on its way.
A selection of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading Present Tense by Natalie Conyer. You can read their comments below, or add your own review.
I love to read, any book on any topic. I now love ebooks as they are easier to store, I was running out of bookshelves! My other interests are family, gardening and our beautiful King Charles spaniel dog who is my reading companion.
Set in post apartheid South Africa – a time still fraught with political upheaval – Present Tense by Naralie Conyer (Echo Publishing), is a gripping murder mystery.
The victim, Piet Pieterse, a retired police chief, has been executed in a way that suggests it is payback for his actions during the apartheid era. He has been “Necklaced” – a tyre drenched with petrol forced around his neck, chest and arms, and set on fire.
Schalk Lourens is the senior officer charged with investigating the case – a case fraught with both personal and professional danger for this flawed but honest cop. Indeed, as the investigation progresses and Schalk gets closer to the truth, the number of bodies associated with it begins to mount.
A well written book which cleverly and realistically portrays the political undercurrents, violence and uncertainty of South Africa. The use of Afrikaans words and phrases, is at times confusing (the glossary helps), but together with descriptions of the underlying racial tensions between different characters, also adds to its authenticity. An unsettling albeit interesting read.
For me this book was very different from anything else I have read. Set in South Africa there are a lot of Afrikaan words used throught the book and there is a Glossary in the back of the book which was very helpful. I did learn a new term and thats “necklacing”. To start with I was very confused as to what this meant when it was said that someone was killed by necklacing. Not a nice way to go as your hands are tied behind your back and tyres placed over your head so that you cant move and then they are set alight. So there we go. I am more knowledgeable then before I started to read the book.
I liked that the book is broken into chapters that each cover a day.
This book would be great for anyone that loves reading about crime and wants a mystery to solve.
Thankyou Beauty and Lace and Echo Publishing for the opportunity to review ‘Present Tense’ by Natalie Conyer.
The chapters of the book are days of the week which made it easy to follow what was happening day by day.
Schalk Laurens is a veteran Captain in the South African Police Force in Cape Town, and is investigating the murder of his friend and boss before his retirement, Pieterse Petrus. He has been murdered in the style of coloured people’s justice called neclacing.
Joepie Fortune is assisting him in the investigation.
Pietere’s glamorous wife, Meri, was away at the time of the murder and was unaware of who could have committed the crime, but as Schalk investigates he discovers links to those involved.
It is set 25 years after the apartheid struggle but there is still unrest in South Africa.
This is a debut novel by Natalie Conyer and is an excellent and exciting crime thriller which brings to the reader the necessity of security in the area.
Present Tense by Natalie Conyer
Having traveled through Africa and spent time in South Africa I was excited to read this book which was set in Cape Town.
Veteran cop Schulz Lourens is assigned to the case of the murder of his old boss, Piet Pieterse, who was set alight. Piet had done some terrible things as a police chief so finding the murderer was proving to be difficult.
Schalk has a lot to deal with and it only gets worse as the story unfolds.
I found this book really interesting and it had me continually wondering what could possibly happen next.
I only found the glossary when I finished the book luckily I could work out most of the Afrikaans and other terms used.
I also noticed there is another book in this series which I will be very keen to read.
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Echo Publishing for my copy to read and review.
Thank you for allowing me to read “*Present Tense” by Natalie Conyer.
This book is set in South Africa. The amount of local slang is a bit confusing. It’s good there was a glossary but it’s still a nuisance to have to keep turning back and forth. The slang suits the story though.
I enjoyed the story and found it very interesting. Top marks for it.
Present Tense by Natalie Conyer
If you like a good Murder Mystery then this book is for you.
The story is set in Cape Town South Africa and is about a horrific murder of retired police chief Piet Pieterse he was necklaced which is an execution type murder from the apartheid era .
Veteran boss cop Schalk Lauren’s is assigned to the case but Piet Pieterse was his old boss .
It is also an election year which is causing alot of unrest in this volatile country .
Schalk has to choose between justice and revenge and help find Piets killer .
A great story I had to refer to the Glossary a few times to understand the lingo in the book .
Thanks beauty and lace .