In Arruda's spunky second throwback adventure to feature Jade del Cameron (after 2006's Mark of the Lion
), the former WWI ambulance driver travels to British East Africa in 1920, to photograph and write about elephants. En route to an elephant sanctuary in remote Mount Marsabit—accompanied by her friend Beverly; Bev's husband, Lord Avery Dunbury; and a 12-year-old Kikuyu boy, Jelani, whom Jade is mentoring—Jade discovers the corpses of four elephants, slain for ivory, and the dead King's African Rifle soldier who evidently tried to stop the poachers. Jade swears to find the killers. Are hostile Abyssinian raiders to blame, or could it be safari leader Harry Hascombe, who's leading a suspicious group of German tourists? Handsome American pilot Sam Featherstone provides romantic interest. The resilient Jade will charm readers as she asserts her independence in rugged Africa. (Dec.)
