Reading Matters (week 46) November 10, 2026

I chat with Deon Meyer, friendly and humble, in spite of being globally praised for his crime writing fiction. Hot off the press comes his seventeenth novel, Scorpio Rising (Macmillan) and of course detectives Benny Griessel and Vaughan Cupido are centre stage with their tracking talents and South African wit.

A caravan explodes killing a young man whilst a shepherd’s hut is also blown up. Theses nefarious actions take place near Stellenbosch – so are they connected? Also, Benny shuts down a crime whilst queuing for meds for his sick wife. How does Deon know the signs of an impending crime? Well, Deon tells me that in his work as a journalist decades ago, he visited, daily, a police Major, learning inter alia, police culture, its brotherhood, challenges “and PTSD.”

Scorpio has been gestating for 15 years, “the plot just wouldn’t go away,” says Deon. Thank goodness it didn’t as the result is Deon Meyer at his best!

The Penguin Post has a fascinating feature on authors and the mother-daughter relationship, often one of literature’s richest territories. I chat about it.

Melinda Ferguson, author and publisher of over 100 books, is doing a Memoir Masterclass for the Jacana Literary Foundation on 18 November, on Zoom. Contact: info@jacanaliteraryfoundation.co.za

A stunning South African Travel Journal: Adventure Guide for Kids by South Africans Mische Hamilton and Kat Cameron (Rock Hopper Books) has arrived just in time for the festive season. It’s an activity book, travel companion and keepsake with maps, wildlife checklists and journaling pages that take them from safaris to beaches and mountains. Wish I’d had it as a kid.

Reading Matters with Sue Grant-Marshall