Paula Berinstein's Blog - Posts Tagged "angola"

The Angolan Clan: A gripping international action thriller! (African Diamonds Trilogy Book 1)
By Christopher Lowery

This was an odd book. It started out great. By the middle I was beginning to lose track of all the gazillions of characters. By the end I felt that the author had gotten tired because the writing became rather hackneyed and the plot rather silly, with the very end being altogether ridiculous.

That said, I did enjoy reading it. I had picked up the book as part of my historical novels of the world project, because how many historical novels deal with Angola and I needed one. And reading it for the history, which is essentially what I was doing, was very interesting indeed.

For example, I did not know that Portugal had experienced a military coup in 1974, which led to the end of its involvement in Africa. That upheaval overthrew the country's longstanding right-wing government and replaced it with a democracy, although not without assorted partisan jockeying in the meantime. I also didn't know that said coup led to the country's abandonment of Angola, Mozambique, and Guinea. And I knew next to nothing about diamond production in Angola, a fascinating if controversial part of its background.

Because I was (and still am) so unfamiliar with the histories of both Portugal and its African colonies, I found it hard to absorb all the background, but now I feel equipped to dig further. How involved were the Russians and the Cubans in the coup, for example? The author maintains that they were instrumental because they wanted the African colonies. What happened to the colonies after the Portuguese left? The author tells us that they devolved into civil war, but I'd like to know what the upshot was. I'd also like to explore the cultures of the places. So many historical novels deal with war, but it would be interesting to read smaller stories that give real insight into the people. (If you know of any, please let me know!)

Would I recommend this book? Yes, if you like learning about history and exploring new places. Yes if you like financial thrillers. Yes if you like suspenseful stories that change locations often. No if you're picky about characterization and perfect writing.