Do you like fantasy novels about lions? Everyone loves a ferocious battle between good and evil and its even more exciting when lions are involved showing tooth and claw. This epic novel features all that plus cameos from shoe bill storks, pangolins, monitor lizards and deadly carnivores who won’t stop until they’ve subdued, a young lion, the hero of the drama. Power and territory are at stake, drawing comparisons with the ominous human world we live in today.
Location: Monde, Zimbabwe. Jasiri the juvenile lion lives unaware his small, aging pride teeters between safety and death by marauders. Elders tell him to remain behind the hunt when he ignores advice during stalking lessons. Hungry, his ashamed mother remains too. The pride don’t return. Jackals at the watering hole whisper of giant paw prints on the outskirts.
Jasiri’s mother fears the worst. In the night she and her son are hunted by a shadowed beast: the infamous “IT”. Jasiri becomes lost when Lubaya grapples with, “IT”. All he has is her last direction. He hopes she’s still alive. Nursed by strangers new ties are forged. Elders warn Jasiri to follow her instructions would be perilous.
Most of a troop of peaceful olive baboons are murdered, reinforcing fears the land is under attack. Undeterred, he heads north. Allies come forth: Papio the baboon, who famously lives for himself, Rafu the giraffe who quizzically is scared of heights and Tocus the shoe bill who is motivated by loss.
Indomitable enemies are bent in gaining power through murder. The allies last hope lies in a legendary warrior. Can they reach him across perilous canyons, mountains and forest? Even if they can, they don’t know if they’ll be able to win his trust, friendship and skills. What is clear, the unlikely band must learn each others strengths fast and become a team if they are to survive the countless enemies that lie in wait.
Best suited for children of ten up to adults of up to eighty years (with out heart complaints) The Zambezi Allies novel tells a fast paced adventure brimming with cliffhangers, conflict and courage.
For nature lovers the novel teems with accurate descriptions of fauna and flora found on the African plains. Animals from pangolins to hippos are portrayed within the constraints of their physical capabilities. But characters reveal themselves with human voices: evil, heroic, sorrowful, and at times celebratory.
