The Last Savanna

By: Mike Bond

Narrated by: Simon Mattacks

Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

"One of the most realistic portrayals of Africa yet." - Yahoo Reviews

With Africa's last elephants dying under the poachers' guns, Kenya rancher and former SAS officer Ian MacAdam leads a commando squad against them. Pursuing the poachers through jungled mountains and searing deserts he battles thirst, solitude, terror and lethal animals, only to find that the poachers have kidnapped a young archaeologist, Rebecca Hecht, whom he once loved and bitterly lost.

McAdam embarks upon a desperate trek to save not only Rebecca but his own soul in an Africa torn apart by wars, overpopulation, and the slaughter of its last wildlife. Based on the author's experiences pursuing elephant poachers in the wilds of East Africa.

©2014 Mike Bond (P)2017 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

African choices by those who k is

I think this book will be most appealing to those who have been to Africa and who enjoy the out of doors and wildlife. I have been to Africa on 8 medical missions and on 6 safaris. This book deals with the reality of the harshness of life in Africa. I enjoyed it between 4&5 stars Very good.
It also deals wit the dilemma of moral decisions and lifes personal dilemmas

I was there

Thank you Mandevilla Press for allowing me to read and review The Last Savanna on NetGalley.

Published: 08/15/13

Stars: 4.5

Amazing. This is the story that block buster movies are made from. I was shocked to see this was published in 2013. This is for smart people.

The synopsis says it all and I'm including the About the Author at the end of the review. It explains what I can't put into words.

Bond put me in the jungle. I could smell the blood. I felt the hatred and fear. Several times I had to stop reading to let my heart and brain come together. I cried a couple times -- once thinking I wouldn't have made it out alive, I would have gotten everyone killed from my crying. It is one thing to know that elephants are killed for their tusks, lions are killed for their skins, etc., but it's different when you experience the kill. The author had me.

His writing is truthful as well as beautiful. As much as I appreciated his talent and want to explore his other works through his eyes, I'm not sure if emotionally I'm strong enough.

This is definitely giftable: A basket with a fine wine, nice liquor, cheese, and chocolate.

* I saw this after reading The Last Savanna and find it matches his book.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Hawaii-based bestselling novelist, international energy expert, war and human rights correspondent and award-winning poet, Mike Bond has lived and worked in many dangerous, remote and war-torn regions of the world. His critically acclaimed novels depict the innate hunger of the human heart for good, the intense joys of love, the terror and fury of battle, the sinister vagaries of international politics and multinational corporations, and the vanishing beauty of the natural world.

Mixed Feeling About this One

Ian McAdams is a transplant from England living in his beloved Africa. He loves everything about the country, the food, the people, the land and the animals. He joins up with his friend and former SAS officer to try and hunt down pouched targeting elephants. It ends up a hunt to save a kidnapped archeologists and the love of his life.

I have mixed reviews of this book and it took me awhile to process. There is an agenda to the book and while I thought it would be more about Africa and the Savannah, it ended up being a lover tracking down his kidnapping love. The ending was a bit of a surprise.

A harsh and devastating fast-pace thriller

This is a tale of loss and love amidst the disappearing wildlife of Africa and the savage destructive brutality of man. Mike Bond writes beautifully, and not only are the characters well-developed, but the African landscape is a central character. The narrative is very visual and unfolds like a movie. The narrator Simon Mattacks is excellent. My only complaint is that halfway through the book, there are no pauses between the narrating of chapters, making it a little hard to follow.

Awful

This was just horrible. Could not get through it.... Had to stop. Not sure how this showed up on my recommended for me list. Yuck.

A Savage Story with No Redemption

Mike Bond is an excellent, descriptive author. The narration by Simon Mattacks was relentless. There isn't any hope or redemption for any of the characters. It was a horrid fascination that led me to finish this book filled with despair and futility.