Let The Dead Lie

Book Summary

Author: 

Malla Nunn

Publisher: 

Pan MacMillan Australia

Copyright Year: 

2010

ISBN: 

9781405039208

No of Pages: 

390

Review By: 

Sharon Halasz

Book Synopsis: 

Durban, South Africa, 1953
Forced to resign from his position of Detective Sergeant and re-classified as ‘mixed race’ after an incident involving a young black woman, Emmanuel Cooper winds up powerless and alone in the tough coastal city of Durban, mixing labouring with surveillance work for his old boss, Major van Niekerk. Patrolling the freight yards one night, he stumbles upon the body of a young white boy and the detective in him cannot, or will not, walk away. When two more bodies – this time an older English woman and her maid – are discovered at his boarding house, he unwittingly becomes the prime suspect in a triple murder case.
At Major van Niekerk’s behest, Cooper is given 48 hours to clear his name and – unofficially – solve the three murders. And so, temporarily back to being a European Detective Sergeant, he descends into Durban’s seedy underworld, a viper’s nest of prostitution, drugs and violence run by Indian gangsters. To solve the crimes and save his own skin, he must place his trust in a mysterious figure who drives a white DeSoto convertible, a Zion Gospel preacher, and the exquisite yet streetwise Lana, who also happens to be Major van Niekerk’s mistress...

Let The Dead Lie is the second novel featuring Detective Sergeant Emmanuel Cooper, a flawed, but trying-to-be-honourable man haunted by his past. He first appeared in A Beautiful Place To Die, the events of which are hinted at in this book, but not in enough detail to spoil the mystery if read out of sequence. I do recommend reading the books in order to better understand both Emmanuel Cooper and the setting.
1950s South Africa is very much a character in this series – indeed, I’d describe it as the main antagonist. From the comfort of a 21st century armchair, it’s a most confronting world that dwells in my memory long after finishing the book. After a harshly beautiful rural setting in the first book, this story moves to the coastal city of Durban. Malla Nunn’s deft descriptions drew me in to this gritty underworld – excellent to read about, hell of a place to live. Or die.
Faced with a ticking clock – forty-eight hours to solve the murders or face arrest and likely hanging – Emmanuel Cooper follows leads and tracks witnesses. Like him, the reader is unsure who to trust. Sometimes help comes from unlikely sources. Danger too. Even his former boss and supposed protector has his own agenda. A fascinating cast of characters overall. I wondered how it would all come together in the end. A suitably twisty ending, of course.
Beautifully written and highly recommended. Let’s hope more trouble is heading Detective Sergeant Emmanuel Cooper’s way soon.