The Picture of Deon Meyer

 

We hadn’t seen Deon Meyer in the UK for a few years, much of the interruption being the COVID-19 global pandemic – which was eerily echoed in his extraordinary novel FEVER released in the summer of 2017.

FEVER was met with huge acclaim – here’s the Shots Magazine review HERE – it also enjoyed a second burst of interest in 2020-2021 during the global pandemic years due to its apocalyptic themes that had migrated from fiction into fact.

I enjoyed spending an afternoon with him back in 2017 discussing our mutual interest in post-apocalyptic fiction both literary and film.

Deon highlighted his favourite Post-Apocalyptic works HERE and when we compared notes naturally Stephen King’s The Stand as well as Robert McCammon’s Swansong and Richard Matheson’s I am Legend came up.  We were also both readers of John Christopher [though he was actually Sam Youd and deployed an array of pennames over the years of which the John Christopher is the one he was most associated with]. From the pen of Christopher would come many science fiction novels that featured apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction. It was his 1956 novel The Death of Grass that allowed him to write full-time [filmed as No Blade of Grass] which he wrote while working in South Africa.

We had both read work such as Neville Shute’s On the Beach, A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller, Jr., John Wyndham’s The Day of the Triffids, PD James’ Children of Men, and then we discussed the films that evoke that Mad Max world, as well as the myriad disaster movies of this sub-genre.

The article that came from that afternoon in 2017 is archived HERE

But back to 2024, post pandemic…..

Hodder and Stoughton had organised a small gathering of London Book Reviewers at the renowned Vivat Bacchus restaurant in the Farringdon district of London.  We were treated to fine South African wine and exotic delicacies, while we chatted to Deon and his charming wife Marianne and our host Naimh Anderson from Hodder and Stoughton publishing.

Joining the Shots Teams of Mike Stotter and Ayo Onatade were the ubiquitous [and knowledgeable] Barry Forshaw from the Financial Times [among others], Jon Coates, editorial from The Express and other journalists.

Of great interest was the extraordinary Netflix action thriller Heart of the Hunter written by Deon Meyer and Willem Grobler based on Deon’s novel of the same name.

Deon’s book HEART OF THE HUNTER was first published in Afrikaans in 2002 (as PROTEUS) and has since been translated into 14 different languages worldwide. It is published in South Africa in Afrikaans by Human & Rousseau and translated into English by K.L. Seegers: in the UK it is published by Hodder & Stoughton, and in the US and Canada by Grove Atlantic. It was selected as one of Chicago Tribune’s 10 best mysteries and thrillers of 2004, longlisted for the IMPAC Literary Award 2005 (now the Dublin Literary Award) and won the Deutsche Krimi Preis, International Category, 2006.

In the Netflix Original film adaptation, Zuko Khumalo is an unassuming family man with a deadly past – but his tranquil world is abruptly turned upside down when an old colleague calls on him to honour an oath he made and save the country from venal political interests. Though he resists being pulled back into his previous life, it becomes clear that events already pose a deadly threat to his domestic ambitions and the peaceful family life he holds so dear. HEART OF THE HUNTER is a tale of one man’s struggle for survival against a corrupt government, a group of bloodthirsty killers and, most of all, against his past.

Read More from Blake Freidman Agency HERE

Though the main talking point was Deon’s upcoming novel LEO which I just read –

It has been a little while since we’ve been riding shotgun with Detective Benny Griessel in South Africa but the wait is finally over with the release of this explosive and violent thriller.

While preparing for his upcoming wedding, Griessel with partner Vince Cupido get involved investigating the death of a female student cyclist on a desolate mountain pass, as well as the principal suspect Basie Small found dead with all the trappings of a professional assassination. Their superiors seem keen to dismiss Basie Small’s murder as a robbery gone tragically wrong. What Basie Small was ‘doing’ may lead Benny and Vince into dangerous intrigue and a conspiracy of sorts that lies at the heart of the country – or does it?

Read the full Shots Magazine review HERE

We present a few photos of the evening as well as Deon’s previous UK visits – I remarked to Deon Meyer that he must have a special painting in his attic, as he has not aged at all over the years we’ve known him – Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray comes to mind I said - which produced a roar of laughter. 

Shots Magazine would like to pass our thanks to Niamh Anderson of Hodder and Stoughton for managing a wonderful launch for Deon - and thanks to his wife Marianne for a wonderful chat.

Foot Note: In memory of Saul Reichlin (1943-2023) from Ali Karim

I would encourage our readers to seek out Deon’s audiobooks narrated by the late Saul Reichlin. His narration / readings are excellent, bringing Deon Meyers’ [and other authors] work to vibrant life.

I was fortunate to have been seated next to him during Crimefest 2009’s Gala Dinner – we had a memorable evening and he is without doubt one of the most interesting people I have met. To cap the evening in style, Saul Reichlin was presented with the best audiobook of the year as voted by Crimefest delegates for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. We kept in contact for a number of years, and I so miss his laughter.

Saul Reichlin worked for six decades as an actor, writer, producer and director, but was most in demand for his rich, warm vocal tones, which he lent to many video games and audiobooks. He narrated more than 245 books including work by Deon Meyer.

He was a tremendous man of the arts, and great raconteur.

Read More HERE