By Francis King
Published Jan 2010
Three women – daughter, mother and aunt – abandon their pampered, privileged lives in The Hague of the 1860’s, to set off on an epic journey to the heart of Africa. They take with them the family butler, nurse and a personal maid each and later, in Cairo recruit a staff of more than a hundred.
In the face of mockery and showing initiative, courage and endurance, the travellers undergo a series of exhilarating adventures, as indomitably they push on with what becomes an exploration not merely of the heart of Africa but of their own inmost selves until, eventually tragedy engulfs each of them in turn.
"Francis King, one of the finest contemporary novelists, is prolific, fluent, witty and moving."
Melvyn Bragg