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| September 2025 #1 Koba Trilogy Estimated run time 7 hours Read by John Maytham Thanks to the author and Rachel’s Random Resources |
Hide!’ shouts her father. Then he breaks cover to draw the hunting party away across the blackened plain. The child sees them shoot him. And murder her mother.
It’s the 1950s but Koba is a hunter-gatherer from an ancient living culture. She’s a survivor. Alone in a cave, she fends for herself, talks to her ancestors, breaks taboos. She gains healing power and tries to ignore the warnings she feels. She trades with the teenage son of the family who orphaned her – bushcraft for jive dancing, salt for honey.
But now she’s in the greatest danger she’s ever faced: she’s falling for a white boy in Apartheid South Africa, where love across racial divides is brutally punished. She hears the axe shatter the bedroom’s wooden shutters but Koba won’t run. Book 1 of this fast-paced saga introduces a striking character into romance-writing, offering readers a fascinating glimpse into a forgotten way of life and into recent black history.
* Occasional, deliberate use of racist language by the villain.
🎧 My Review..
This is an interesting coming of age story during a difficult time in South Africa’s history. It tells of the forbidden relationship between Koba, an indigenous girl who lives alone and Mannie, an Afrikaner teenage boy, whose family were responsible for the loss of Koba’s family. This is a fascinating book to listen to as the beautiful narration by John Matthew really enhances the story in a special way however, it is in the troubled landscape, and the friendship between Kobe and Mannie where the true power of the story lies.
The story flows well, the pacing of the narrative kept my attention and with a clear and expressive narrator the story came to life. I could feel the tension in the atmosphere and was fascinated by Kobe’s deep attachment to the land and the ancient culture of her people. This was a very different time and the writing reflects that and doesn’t shy away from explaining the brutality of apartheid and the harsh consequences of living during this difficult time in South African history.
Coming in at around 7 hours the audio book is managed in easily listening chunks and with a good narrator this was an interesting and informative book which brought Koba and Mannie’s story to life in a meaningful way.
About the Author
Candi Miller was born in southern Africa and has spent decades researching the first people of the region, a group who feature in the novel. She loves to tell the many unique and exciting experiences she’s had in the bush and around campfires. She taught creative writing in the UK where she now lives. She is republishing her novels to support a school feeding scheme for marginalised children which she co-founded in 2017.
Website: https://www.candimiller.co.uk/my-novels.html
Substack: https://candimiller.substack.com/publish/post/141372314?back=%2Fpublish%2Fposts%2Fdetail%2F141372314
https://substack.com/home/post/p-137297879
Link to the first chapter of the sequel, free to read.
https://candimiller.substack.com/p/dear-paid-subscriber
Facebook author page
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092417402759
Insta: @candimillerauthor
https://www.instagram.com/candimillerauthor/
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