Bryony Rheam

When Marcia Pullman is found stabbed in her home in the Zimbabwean town of Bulawayo, Chief Inspector Edmund Dube has not the slightest idea what hornets’ net he is kicking. The seemingly nice and neat business woman obviously had some side affairs rather on the dark side and knew how to make people comply with her rules. Not only is the case complex, also in his police station Edmund is confronted with obstacles, someone tries to boycott his investigation. But he has learnt how life works and his ethics keep him fighting for truth no matter how many spanners are thrown in his works.

Bryony Rheam’s mystery “All Come to Dust” is a kind of classic murder investigation deeply rooted in the Zimbabwe culture. Many aspects of the novel can only happen in such surroundings and are a prerequisite to develop in the first place. The protagonist is a lonely wolf with a complex character and background who determinedly follows his mission.

What I liked most was how the complexity of the story slowly unfolds. What seems to be a rather simple case motivated by well-known motives, turns out to be an actual net of diverse motivations and intentions the characters follow. It is hard to detect where the actual danger comes from and with the protagonist fighting his own battles while solving a crime, the novel provides mysteries on different levels.

Even though the plot is masterly crafted, I found it a bit lengthy at times and would have preferred a more straight-forward investigation. The character development is also brilliantly done, but this also leads to a diversion of the actual mystery plot.

An interesting read which provided me with a lot of insight into a culture completely unknown to me.… (altro)