Review of A Thief in the African Night

[Ben Madeley]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "A Thief in the African Night" by Joe Miano.]

---

4 out of 5 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Joe Miano's book, A Thief in the African Night: The Conflicts of Change, is a historical fiction novel based on true events. It details the colonialism in East Africa from the 1890s until the First World War and then the struggle for freedom of the African populace afterward. The novel follows the lives of three young men from three different tribes. They are Laikisat of the Maasai, Njage of the Meru, and Gichuru of the Gikuyu. All three grow into warriors in this time of change for their people when British colonialists start to take control of the area and force the tribes to give up their traditional ways of life to follow the instructions of their new rulers. Each character has a key role to play for their tribe and also for the colonialists, as they each play a role in working with the British in their attempts to defeat Germany in the First World War. The three individuals gradually become friends and start to unite in what will become a fight for the freedom of Africans in East Africa.

The book has several positive aspects. It's an enjoyable read that wasn't difficult to finish. It's well-written, and the author has clearly done an awful lot of research on the topic and the area. He also spent time in Kenya earlier in his life, which I think gave him a real insight into the different tribes and ways of life that exist within the country. I learned much about an area I hadn't studied in detail. I enjoyed the way that the three main characters came from different tribes but quickly became friends and understood their need to work together for the collective benefit of their people. I also enjoyed reading about Njage's tribe's backstory and about Omari and Mahiri. I particularly enjoyed that part of the story and learning about the complex history of the different tribes.

On the negative side, I can't really find much to criticize. I found it a little confusing to start with as there were a lot of names of people and tribes that I was unfamiliar with, and it took me a while to work out who was who and where they were from. There are some great maps at the back of the book, but I wish there were some at the beginning so that I could get my head around where each of the tribes was in relation to each other, as well as the British and the Germans. Although I found the story interesting, I wanted more thrilling action that would draw me in further and make the book impossible to put down. The book also had a few minor errors, but nothing to detract from its quality.

I rate A Thief in the African Night: The Conflicts of Change 4 out of 5. It's an interesting book, and I enjoyed reading it. I am already fascinated by history and learning about different areas, so this was the perfect book for me. I just wanted a little more action and suspense in the story because it could sometimes feel a little slow.

This book should appeal to any reader who is fascinated by historical fiction, East African history, or colonialism.

******
A Thief in the African Night
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Abu_Aisha1]

It takes quite a lot of research to write a good historical fiction book and it is obvious that
the author didn't fall short of that. I like how you highlighted the positive aspects of this book. Great review!

[Omneya Shakeep]

The first thing that came to my mind after reading your summary was the Tarzan movie; I could visualize what you were describing from there. The storyline sounds fascinating; maybe I will give it a try. Thanks for this great review. 

[zynnyx_]

This is a historical fiction that also feels like an adventure. I commend the author's hard work and research.

[Stephen Christopher 1]

Hi Ben, this sounds like a fascinating book. Like you Kenya is a part of the world I don't know a lot about but would be interesting to learn about. The book sounds like the ideal history lesson. Thanks for the great review.

[Ben Madeley]

Hi Ben, this sounds like a fascinating book. Like you Kenya is a part of the world I don't know a lot about but would be interesting to learn about. The book sounds like the ideal history lesson. Thanks for the great review.

Indeed, thanks for the comment Stevie