"Those in Peril" by Wilbur Smith (2011)

Latest novel by Wilbur Smith came as a big surprise for several reasons,one of them being what a gripping read this turned out to be - something not expected from a writer in his late 70s. It is pure adventure escapism,with main character being all-knowing superhero (Hector Cross) with a military past,backed by his group of faithful warriors and fighting sea piracy in modern day Somalia. Unfortunately sea piracy is actually very current phenomenon and it is happening far more than people are aware,my own ship has been attacked on coast of Africa - luckily nothing serious happened,as opposite to story in this adventure novel where main characters fight pirates,dogs,ships,religious prejudice and what not.

Smith toys with several weapons here - not only he sets the story in modern day Africa but his baddies are dangerous Arabs (gone are the days when bad guys were russian,asian or aliens) who are all fired up with religious rules set in stone,good guys are all white and just to make it clear how good they are,they secretly witness public punishment in some arab village where people are killed and mutilated for some silly offense. So it is a clear message,us against them. This is not a place to question white and black,what makes a person an enemy and points of view of different nationalities,however occasionally I was aware of ham-fisted approach to paint good and bad characters. At the end,the story turned out to be good,old-fashioned gripping adventure novel that I gulped faster than expected and if you are looking for entertainment,escapism and adventure (and switch off the part of the brain that questions too much) here is my recommendation. Very good vacation read.

Minor criticism: the story is interesting and very readable even without graphic sex scenes. I understand this might appeal to teenagers but it wasn't really adding anything to story (in fact,it was just slowing it down) and it surprised me,as I didn't expect it from Wilbur Smith. Whoever suggested to him this should guarantee success,it wasn't such a good idea,I hope next time this aspect will be toned down. It is simply not necessary.