Customer Reviews

The White Rhino Hotel: Library Edition (Anton Rider Trilogy)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I came to this book after reading and immensely enjoying its sequel, A CAFE ON THE NILE. Since I like rip-roaring adventures in faraway places, and the sequel proved so enjoyable, I grabbed this one up as soon as I found it in a used bookstore. And it was enjoyable, creating a world for me which constantly drew me back each time I'd put the book down. Yet there was something lacking in this tale of new settlers and broken souls cast up on the shores of British East Africa (the future Kenya). Here were all the characters who play such a significant role in the subsequent book and we get to see how they found their way to become what we later encounter there. The English gypsy boy, Anton Rider, lost and adrift in England will find his moorings in the African bush -- a hunter and adventurer with a touch of the farmer in him. The dwarf from Goa, Olivio Fonseca Alavedo, a man who will gradually change from the cold-hearted schemer who cares for nothing but himself to the cold-hearted schemer who also, by the way, happens to care for a few friends. Gwenn Llywellen, wife of a broken World War I soldier, will endure the wilds of the new country and the sadness of loss while becoming a stronger person. Lord Penfold, hotel proprietor and down and out English gentleman, will sink further into ineffectualness but never, quite, inactivity. And the German ex-soldier, Ernst von Decken, will demonstrate why he can be relied upon despite his cold and ruthless ways. All of these are here in a tale of wandering and land-grabbing and lust in colonial Africa. And yes, there's lots of lust. In fact the sex is rather prominent in this tale, and frequently quite strange. Besides the usual sort, we are treated to Olivio's kinkiness and a brutal rape. And Mr. Bull has a thing for recurring motifs: The twin Somali courtesans here, the "Black Tulips", vs. the sexually assertive and promiscuous American twins in the sequel. Olivio bound and trapped in both books facing imminent destruction through immolation. The loss of a beloved African sidekick in both. I could go on. But suffice it to say that the sexuality has an oddly abstract quality to it (it does not kindle and smolder in the reader's mind as, I think, it should) while Mr. Bull seems to be fixated on a number of recurring motifs and situations. Yet, this said, I must add that while the book did not surprise as I'd hoped, the tale did not keep me guessing, it once again kept me coming back and wanting more of the wild world which Bull portrayed. For a big book, I thought the end rather rushed and almost anti-climactic. And somewhat predictable. But it was an experience to be reading it. (I put several others aside just to see it through.) Perhaps if I'd read this one before its sequel I wouldn't have been so disappointed. But, on balance, I liked the second one better.The King of Vinland's Saga

Bartle Bull's "The White Rhino Hotel" is the first novel in his series of historical fiction about colonial Africa ("A Cafe on the Nile" and "The Devil's Oasis" follow), and "White Rhino" gets the series off to a rip-roaring start.

Starting in 1919 as WWI closes, "White Rhino" follows a varied band of intrepid heroes, trusty sidekicks, and dastardly villains as the British start to assert their control over Kenya. Thanks to British arrogance and a fundamental misunderstanding of Africa, chaos abounds. Fortunes can be made and lost for the daring, the cunning, and the ruthless.

Anton Rider is arguably the "hero" if the tale, and he is a young English gypsy seeking his fortune on the Dark Continent. En route to Africa, he meets Gwenn Llewelyn, the beautiful Welsh ambulance driver who is heading to Kenya to meet her fiance, Alan, who suffers cruelly from his wounds sustained in the British army but still dreams of starting a farming life in Kenya. Adam Penfold is a small-time English lord who thinks he runs the White Rhino Hotel in Kenya, which is the focal point for much of the tale as the local bastion of European civilization. But the hotel is actually run by Olivio Alovedo, Bull's greatest creation, a dwarf majordomo who schemes triumphs and vendettas while having some of the kinkiest sex imaginable.

As the story follows these characters and several others through the struggles to start a new life in Africa, Bull displays a commanding knowledge of the unique pulse of African life. Regardless of whether he's describing a lonely safari far from the trammels of civilization, the smelly optimism on a steamer ship from England to Africa, or the melting pot of various nationalities, agendas, and ambitions of the players in the White Rhino Bar, Bull transports the reader to another time and place with effortless efficiency.

That he peppers his story with copious amounts of sex and violence is a plus, for Bull is spinning a yarn here. Look for sly seductions, profound loves, heart-breaking losses, and above it all, sudden swift death that can reach out for anyone at any time. The pages will fly by as you get deeper and deeper into Bull's world, and you care more and more for his rag-tag bunch of misfits and explorers.

The only reason that I don't give "White Rhino" five stars is that I want to distinguish it from "A Cafe on the Nile," which is in the same vein as "White Rhino," but is an even more epic and enjoyable read.

I recently have blown through a quartet of novels by a writer with the unlikely name of Bartle Bull (he's said to be a former publisher of the Village Voice). The politically incorrect but somewhat historically accurate novels set mostly in Africa in the 1918-1943 timeline are quite a delight, assuming one goes for African Adventure and I do, boy howdy. These novels are fun, intriguing and semi informative. And, they're about AFRICA.

For those largely ignorant (as was I) of the Italian invasion of Abysinia (aka Ethiopia) in the mid-Thirties, Cafe on the Nile is especially interesting.

The White Rhino Hotel

A Cafe on the Nile

The Devil's Oasis

Shanghai Station. OK, so it's not Africa; it's Shanghai. Sue me, do.

Finest kind of light reading, perfect for escapist holidays, beach reading, flight numbing and generally out-of-the-loop fare. To be enjoyed.

The author has captured the time period in this sometimes rousing and gripping adventure tale. The book is peopled with some mighty odd characters, some ruthless and cunning, others heroic and tough. Some of the scenes are downright incredible as the characters try to carve out a new life in the danger-filled Kenyian jungles and fields. Colorful local flavor, some good old fashioned fist-fights, daring-do, narrow escapes and the tasty flavor of revenge as all the interwoven tales come together. The star of this book is the mis-shapen dwarf who plans, simmers and befriends his way through the various characters. The first in a series of three novels with over-lapping characters, some of whom perish in the process.

Check it out.

For the reader who gets lost in the beauty of Out of Africa, enjoys the adventure yarns of a Wilbur Smith and who yearns for a plot-drven page-turner, this is the rollicking good read. Peopled with compelling characters: Anton Rider, a gypsy boy who jumps ship in Dar es Salaam; Gwenn Llewelyn, a Welsh wife who travels to Kenya to meet her war-separated, badly wounded husband; Adam Penfold, an oh-so languid, but kindly English upper cruster captivated by Africa; and, Olivio Fonseca Alavedo, an evil-looking, always plotting, Goan dwarf. Mix these with some truly evil Europeans and a number of kindly natives (badly sterotyped, I'm afraid) and you'll find yourself engrossed in an old-fahioned adventure. This is the first of three (with surely more to come) in a series.

The White Rhino Hotel is the prequel to the famous Café on the Nile and does a nice job of explaining the origins of the main characters, Anton Rider, the gypsy boy out for adventure in British Africa, Gwen Llewellyn, his wife to be, Ernst von Decken, a true German, who is as straight and honest as any man can be but cannot live with the burden of having lost the Great War, and Olivio Alavedo, the mysterious Goan dwarf who will make a great fortune through his business and people skills, which make up for his physical shortcoming. With these characters, we are transplanted into an exciting age, right after the end of World War I, and follow the changes in the world as well as in the personal lives of our heroes. We experience love and safari adventures, intrigues and international tensions. As Anton Rider sets out for Kenya to escape the class society of his homeland he encounters Gwen Llewellyn, a young army nurse, on the way to meet her wounded husband and start a new future in Africa. When Gwen's husband dies, Anton and his acquaintance, Lord Penfold help Gwen build up her farm and care for her son, Wellington. Olivio Alavedo and Ernst von Decken help the young couple establish themselves in the harsh African wilderness and we see the start of a life-long bond between these peculiar yet friendly characters. If you enjoy historical and geographical adventure stories with a flair of British-colonialism you are in for a great read. My favorite part of the book was definitely the friendship between Anton Rider and Ernst von Decken, a relationship that consists mostly of admiration and respect, and is composed of an unlikely match as the English Rider faces prejudices from the German von Decken but finds him extremely amicable and truly desires to learn from his wisdom. Together they survive adventures and built a life-long friendship, which builds up in the following two books and symbolizes the hope for international peace and communication amongst people. My least favorite part of the book was in the beginning, when Gwen, who was on the way to Africa to meet her husband is raped by a drunk Irishman and has to live with the horrible reality of not being able to tell her husband, who has become infertile due to a war injury, that she is carrying somebody else's baby. I thought that this part of the plot was too violent, and contradicted the otherwise romantic/adventurous mood of the rest of the book. I do acknowledge, however, that the violence may have been effective in showing that not everything went smooth in overseas travel in those days and that Africa was a dangerous place to be. Finally, I would like to recommend this book to everyone, regardless of age or nationality, as it picks up on historical facts and builds a dramatic and romantic adventure story, full with characters which you will surely close into your heart. The book transforms you into a different time and is exciting as it lets you participate in the glorious days of the British Empire.

What strikes me first about "The White Rhino Hotel" is the almost surreal cast of characters that engulfs one's interest immediately. They are eclectic beyond the definition! And while the cast and crew rush headlong into and through all kinds of dilemmas, intrigues, complications, and predicaments (and even funny situations!) that would otherwise be chaos, Bartle Bull certainly is in control of the entire literary picture here.

Perhaps "fascination" is the noun to name my reaction to the book. Clever and creative, the book is more than a story line, more than just this collection of characters, as Bull gives us a reading experience worthy of our time.

It's Kenya, just as World War I is ending, this part of the globe to British at the time represents a brave new world-one without the ravages of the Great War, politically, socially, economically, you name it. And it is to the White Rhino these expatriots and others gather, the "civilized" watering hole of Africa, all of the characters with personal agendas (and hangups!) of their own. Truly, Bull's characters make the book as adventure combines with romance which combines with a circus full of "exhibitions."

It is Lord Adam Penfold who brings together these characters. His hotel is the magnet that attracts them, for better or for worse, providing them with just about everything they hope for, within reason. The symbolism, of course, is not lost here. The clever and dangerous dwarf Olivio Alavedo, the Gypsy Anton Rider, and the Welch femme fatale Gwenn Llewelyn -they bring their private agendas to the front (lust, revenge, greed, jealousy-you name it!). They all see Kenya as the fulfillment of their dreams. Of course, Bull does justice to all his characters, readily throwing realism with the melodrama into their fantasies, which makes the novel seem even more empowering.

"The White Rhino Hotel" is one of the more interesting books of my summer. (Billyjhobbs@tyler.net)

The end of WW I brought with it the dawning of a new colonial era in many parts of Africa, as European nations converted former soldiers into settlers in various distant colonies, literally turning swords into ploughshares. This first novel uses the "opening up" of Kenya from 1918-21 as the vivid backdrop for an old-fashioned, page-turning adventure featuring a colorful, multinational cast. The first quarter of the book establishes the background of all the main characters and their motives for heading to Kenya, where their lives and ambitions will intersect at the frontier hotel of the title. Among the people we meet are: Anton Rider, an English half-gypsy who has been an outsider everywhere and seeks adventure; Gwenn a beautiful Welsh ambulance driver who's heading to meet her maimed husband and start a new life; Penfold, an increasingly destitute English lord who's hotel is the locus of the story; Olivio, a proud Goan dwarf who is major domo at the hotel and spies on all intrigues in the area; Fonseca, a brutal and ruthless Portuguese nobleman who's looking to grab land; Annunciata, his sexpot sister; Ernst von Decken, a former German officer; Rack Slider, American safari leader; and various other exotic prostitutes, evil Irishmen, and noble natives (the heroic sidekick Karioki and his nubile sister being the two most prominent).

These folks are all painted with rather broad strokes, as is the norm in historical adventures such as this, however they are so exotic and fun, one generally doesn't mind. There actually, a few transformations that are quite nice, notably the dwarf's realization that friends can exist. Still, it seems a pity that the natives (aside from Olivio's concubine) all come across as part of the landscape, like the lions, elephants, and other flora and fauna so lovingly detailed. The relationship of Anton and Karioki, has a decidedly Lone Ranger and Tontoish feel to it. With Anton as the hero, the reader is propelled through a number of set-piece hunting scenes, a running plot of intrigue and colonial corruption, and vivid portrayals of the harshness of the land toward unprepared newcomers. It's quite fun-if one is willing to take it as an boisterous old-fashioned "boy's own" adventure, with some rather lurid sex, and a few shocking scenes of tragedy and violence. Indeed, at times the book can be quite jarring, as a major character is killed, or in one particularly nasty rape scene. It's as if the author was trying to write an old-fashioned yarn with a heavy dose of reality added. While I quite liked this approach, others may find it upsetting, and it probably isn't appropriate for those under 18.

The end of WW I brought with it the dawning of a new colonial era in many parts of Africa, as European nations converted former soldiers into settlers in various distant colonies, literally turning swords into ploughshares. This first novel uses the "opening up" of Kenya from 1918-21 as the vivid backdrop for an old-fashioned, page-turning adventure featuring a colorful, multinational cast. The first quarter of the book establishes the background of all the main characters and their motives for heading to Kenya, where their lives and ambitions will intersect at the frontier hotel of the title. Among the people we meet are: Anton Rider, an English half-gypsy who has been an outsider everywhere and seeks adventure; Gwenn a beautiful Welsh ambulance driver who's heading to meet her maimed husband and start a new life; Penfold, an increasingly destitute English lord who's hotel is the locus of the story; Olivio, a proud Goan dwarf who is major domo at the hotel and spies on all intrigues in the area; Fonseca, a brutal and ruthless Portuguese nobleman who's looking to grab land; Annunciata, his sexpot sister; Ernst von Decken, a former German officer; Rack Slider, American safari leader; and various other exotic prostitutes, evil Irishmen, and noble natives (the heroic sidekick Karioki and his nubile sister being the two most prominent).

These folks are all painted with rather broad strokes, as is the norm in historical adventures such as this, however they are so exotic and fun, one generally doesn't mind. There actually, a few transformations that are quite nice, notably the dwarf's realization that friends can exist. Still, it seems a pity that the natives (aside from Olivio's concubine) all come across as part of the landscape, like the lions, elephants, and other flora and fauna so lovingly detailed. The relationship of Anton and Karioki, has a decidedly Lone Ranger and Tontoish feel to it. With Anton as the hero, the reader is propelled through a number of set-piece hunting scenes, a running plot of intrigue and colonial corruption, and vivid portrayals of the harshness of the land toward unprepared newcomers. It's quite fun-if one is willing to take it as an boisterous old-fashioned "boy's own" adventure, with some rather lurid sex, and a few shocking scenes of tragedy and violence. Indeed, at times the book can be quite jarring, as a major character is killed, or in one particularly nasty rape scene. It's as if the author was trying to write an old-fashioned yarn with a heavy dose of reality added. While I quite liked this approach, others may find it upsetting, and it probably isn't appropriate for those under 18.

A thrilling mixture of adventure, romance and history. Set in East Africa in 1920, a remarkable collection of characters plunge us into the Africa of the time- with all the sights and sounds and smells that bring it to life. The people are even more intriguing than the animals, and this sexy historical adventure makes you feel you are there. I learned a lot and can't wait for the next one.