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Last of the Pirates: The Search for Bob Denard
This riveting book gives an account of an intrepid young woman's eccentric quest, as Samantha Weinberg pursues one of the last of a dying breed: an elusive French mercenary who plied his trade, ruthlessly, throughout the African continent. The Comoros are small specks in the Indian Ocean, four volcanic islands known for their beauty and for ylang-ylang, an exotic flower whose extract is widely used in French perfumes. For many years they were also the home of Bob Denard, who arrived by way of Katanga, the Congo, Yemen, Angola, Biafra, Gabon, and Benin. Once in the Comoros, he overthrew two presidents in three years. In 1989 he, too, was overthrown, and then he disappeared. Last of the Pirates is a thrilling story of beauty, intrigue, cruelty, and murder: a book about an exotic place few of us have ever imagined, and about a murderous, machista culture that aimed to transform it.
257 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1994
126 people want to read
About the author
Samantha Weinberg
7 books23 followersSamantha Weinberg is the real name of the author Kate Westbrook.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 26, 2022
3.5 stars
This is an intriguing mix of history and travel writing—and an unusual true crime book, much of it devoted to the author’s investigation of who killed President Ahmed Abdallah Abderemane, of Comoros, in 1989. I was looking for a book about the Comoros and, being in the last 15 countries for my world books challenge, had low expectations; this book exceeded them, although it’s dated in some unfortunate ways today.
Samantha Weinberg traveled to Comoros in the early 1990s due to fascination with a French mercenary, Bob Denard, who was hired for two successive coups there, took a major role in government, and was finally expelled from the tiny island nation after the mysterious murder of the president he served. Much of the book consists of Weinberg traveling the islands, getting to know the place, and talking to the players. I love that about writing featuring tiny countries: the way a journalist can just show up and talk to everyone who’s played a major role in the political events of the last few decades (to the extent they’re still alive, and if not, there’s always their relatives). Weinberg brings the place vividly to life, and I learned a lot about Comoros and its late 20th century history.
As for the murder itself, while Weinberg eventually floats a theory that sounds reasonable enough, she doesn’t solve it and the book largely consists of simply presenting her interviews, letting readers piece together the evidence for themselves. It’s a very complex situation, and I would have appreciated a character list (I did appreciate the historical chronology and maps), but I was fascinated to follow the evidence as it unfolds.
That said, I had some discomfort with the author’s perspective; this was only published in 1994, but it feels more dated than that. She seems eager to romanticize and excuse the mercenaries, particularly Denard, though she does still carefully scrutinize his version of the murder and find it wanting. (Sadly she’s hardly alone in the romanticization. When ultimately tried in France for a coup attempt in Benin, Denard is let off easy by the judicial system and celebrated by the public because it turns out he did it at the behest of the French secret services, which, oof.) There are a handful of weird comments about Africa—“the dark continent,” “what place is there for logic in Africa?”, the general downplaying of why people would hold a dim view of the apartheid government of South Africa—perhaps not a surprise given that her grandparents were white South Africans. She also seems to hold a rather dim view of other women, rarely associating with them and describing one of her few female interviewees as “well-preserved.”
All that said, the book did open a window for me into a country I knew nothing about, and the problematic elements didn’t feel too overwhelming. Ultimately Weinberg interviews everyone she can find and seems to present their versions fairly. I enjoyed reading the book and learned a fair bit from it. Rounding up my rating mostly just because I’m a contrarian—if this book was popular I’d probably call it three stars, but I think it’s better than the low current rating would have you believe.
This is an intriguing mix of history and travel writing—and an unusual true crime book, much of it devoted to the author’s investigation of who killed President Ahmed Abdallah Abderemane, of Comoros, in 1989. I was looking for a book about the Comoros and, being in the last 15 countries for my world books challenge, had low expectations; this book exceeded them, although it’s dated in some unfortunate ways today.
Samantha Weinberg traveled to Comoros in the early 1990s due to fascination with a French mercenary, Bob Denard, who was hired for two successive coups there, took a major role in government, and was finally expelled from the tiny island nation after the mysterious murder of the president he served. Much of the book consists of Weinberg traveling the islands, getting to know the place, and talking to the players. I love that about writing featuring tiny countries: the way a journalist can just show up and talk to everyone who’s played a major role in the political events of the last few decades (to the extent they’re still alive, and if not, there’s always their relatives). Weinberg brings the place vividly to life, and I learned a lot about Comoros and its late 20th century history.
As for the murder itself, while Weinberg eventually floats a theory that sounds reasonable enough, she doesn’t solve it and the book largely consists of simply presenting her interviews, letting readers piece together the evidence for themselves. It’s a very complex situation, and I would have appreciated a character list (I did appreciate the historical chronology and maps), but I was fascinated to follow the evidence as it unfolds.
That said, I had some discomfort with the author’s perspective; this was only published in 1994, but it feels more dated than that. She seems eager to romanticize and excuse the mercenaries, particularly Denard, though she does still carefully scrutinize his version of the murder and find it wanting. (Sadly she’s hardly alone in the romanticization. When ultimately tried in France for a coup attempt in Benin, Denard is let off easy by the judicial system and celebrated by the public because it turns out he did it at the behest of the French secret services, which, oof.) There are a handful of weird comments about Africa—“the dark continent,” “what place is there for logic in Africa?”, the general downplaying of why people would hold a dim view of the apartheid government of South Africa—perhaps not a surprise given that her grandparents were white South Africans. She also seems to hold a rather dim view of other women, rarely associating with them and describing one of her few female interviewees as “well-preserved.”
All that said, the book did open a window for me into a country I knew nothing about, and the problematic elements didn’t feel too overwhelming. Ultimately Weinberg interviews everyone she can find and seems to present their versions fairly. I enjoyed reading the book and learned a fair bit from it. Rounding up my rating mostly just because I’m a contrarian—if this book was popular I’d probably call it three stars, but I think it’s better than the low current rating would have you believe.
August 17, 2025
Never heard of Bob Denard? Me either, but this was another of my countries of the world challenge and is set in Comoros. Which, by the way, I'd never heard of either. Comoros is a country in the Indian Ocean and is a group of islands just north of Madagascar.
On the back of the covers and facing pages is a map, which was very helpful. On the first couple of pages is a chronology showing how these island first became French "protectorates" in the mid 1800s, and then beginning in the early 1970s there begins a number of coups. The premise of the book is that Bob Denard, a Frenchman who had been a mercenary in several African countries, likely organized these coups. The last coup was in November 1989 and Bob Denard was asked to leave Comoros in December 1989.
I admit my mind wandered a bit while reading and so the similarity of the names became a bit confusing to me. The author was present on the islands beginning in 1990 to talk to potential witnesses. I had to stop reading for a bit and begin another title, which is close to unheard of for me. I'm mostly a one-book-at-a-time reader except for interspersing short stories with a novel or work of non-fiction. When I picked it back up again, apparently my mind was more focused.
The parts I liked best were when she was describing the Comoros Islands, sometimes referred to the Perfume Islands. The ylang ylang is a plant perfumers use for scent and apparently its fragrance permeates these islands. I've been reading several titles recently where colonization gave the background. Early, Weinberg states However, while much had changed in the rest of the world since the heady days of 1968, the Comoros had stayed suspended in a time capsule. Sometimes colonization just doesn't work.
I think this review is less coherent than I'd like. Perhaps my mind is still wandering. In any case, I'm not sorry I read this for the history. I like to be always learning. Still, I think these couple of decades might have been presented in a more fluid and readable manner and I can find only 3 stars at best.
On the back of the covers and facing pages is a map, which was very helpful. On the first couple of pages is a chronology showing how these island first became French "protectorates" in the mid 1800s, and then beginning in the early 1970s there begins a number of coups. The premise of the book is that Bob Denard, a Frenchman who had been a mercenary in several African countries, likely organized these coups. The last coup was in November 1989 and Bob Denard was asked to leave Comoros in December 1989.
I admit my mind wandered a bit while reading and so the similarity of the names became a bit confusing to me. The author was present on the islands beginning in 1990 to talk to potential witnesses. I had to stop reading for a bit and begin another title, which is close to unheard of for me. I'm mostly a one-book-at-a-time reader except for interspersing short stories with a novel or work of non-fiction. When I picked it back up again, apparently my mind was more focused.
The parts I liked best were when she was describing the Comoros Islands, sometimes referred to the Perfume Islands. The ylang ylang is a plant perfumers use for scent and apparently its fragrance permeates these islands. I've been reading several titles recently where colonization gave the background. Early, Weinberg states However, while much had changed in the rest of the world since the heady days of 1968, the Comoros had stayed suspended in a time capsule. Sometimes colonization just doesn't work.
I think this review is less coherent than I'd like. Perhaps my mind is still wandering. In any case, I'm not sorry I read this for the history. I like to be always learning. Still, I think these couple of decades might have been presented in a more fluid and readable manner and I can find only 3 stars at best.
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November 9, 2019About mid-way through the book I got hung up on the title of the book. Bob Denard is a mercenary, not a pirate, so the title of this book doesn't make sense to me. If anyone out there has an explanation, please let me know!
Otherwise the book was fine, nothing outstanding. It's basically the author's interpretation of the history of the Comoros since independence based on a number of personal interviews. As the author acknowledges in the book, people don't necessarily tell her the truth all the time so it's a bunch of stories from a variety of people some of which may have elements of truth and some of which may be all lies. There isn't much analysis because, really, who knows what happened.
The author mentions some unique aspects of the Comoros and some of their traditions, which made the book more interesting to me.
Otherwise the book was fine, nothing outstanding. It's basically the author's interpretation of the history of the Comoros since independence based on a number of personal interviews. As the author acknowledges in the book, people don't necessarily tell her the truth all the time so it's a bunch of stories from a variety of people some of which may have elements of truth and some of which may be all lies. There isn't much analysis because, really, who knows what happened.
The author mentions some unique aspects of the Comoros and some of their traditions, which made the book more interesting to me.
June 5, 2018
I chose this for my round the world trip as it very difficult to find books about Comoros let alone written by someone from there. It was an interesting read in many respects, about the islands and the history along with the role of mercenaries in Africa but I found the style of writing to be just a little convoluted. Admittedly there was a lot of versions of the story to incorporate but I often found it difficult to retain my place in the narrative. Certainly not disappointed I read it though.
July 26, 2021
There is more about Samantha Weinberg than Bob Denard in the book. Still, interesting read.
November 5, 2023
A challenge had me looking for a book set in Comoros. This was the only one I could fine, but it was a great surprise. Part travelogue, part recent history of the island, part true crime mystery, this book gave me my first look at this tiny country. 3.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews