Escape to Africa

Mark of the Lion by Suzanne Arruda
The premise of this book intrigued me. After serving as an ambulance driver in France during WWI and seeing her fiancé die in battle, a young woman travels to Africa to solve the mystery of her fiancé’s father’s suspicious death, and find his long lost half brother. Jade del Cameron is a modern woman, with bobbed hair, great courage, a great shot, and a disregard for convention. In order to find out the truth, she must outwit stuffy British colonials and a witch doctor with the power to control the deadly animals of Africa. She faces down charging lions and lingering shell shock with the help of her outspoken friend Lady Beverly Dunbury, and a taciturn Somali gun bearer. The only mark against this novel was its heroine’s improbable name Jade del Cameron. I look forward to reading about her further adventures on the Dark Continent.