This book falls squarely within the adventure/ intrigue genre. It snuggles up to Wilbur Smith, takes its hat off to Willard Price, dogs Clive Cussler’s footsteps and nods deferentially to Matthew Reilly. The story itself is relatively inventive and follows a convoluted, sometimes moderately unbelievable plot involving the NSA, CIA and the South African National Security Agency.

The author, David Thompson, is clearly himself a reader of adventure novels and I can recognise the synthesis of the work of a number of authors mixed in like nuts in a particularly chewy nougat. It’s a relatively easy read that doesn’t take itself too seriously and at a svelte 205 pages, it’s accessible to even the most timid and easily fatigued reader.

Mr Thompson plays on themes of environmental disaster and shadowy criminal masterminds, international intrigue and the bonds of family… and did I mention there was a love interest? He even manages to work in neo-nazis. Whilst the writing is accessible, it can at times be a little hackneyed. A good example is the name of the protagonist, Jack Panther. The book is defiantly proudly South African and littered with South African cultural references. To sum up, Skeleton Coast is an interesting read – at times, unintentionally comic and never dull. This is the kind of book that I would like to find secreted in the bookcase of a holiday home, easy to read and not too intellectually challenging.