Last of the Pirates: The Search for Bob Denard

The Comoros are four small islands off the coast of Mozambique, three of which declared their independence from France in 1975. British writer David Lamb christened this little-known nation ``Cloud Coup-Coup Land,'' no misnomer since the government suffered four coups between 1975 and 1992. It was the third of these, in which President Ahmed Abdallah Abderemane was murdered in 1989, that piqued the interest of British freelance journalist Weinberg. Of particular fascination to her was French mercenary Bob Denard, a major player in the Comorian security and military forces, who, since 1960, had served as a soldier of fortune throughout Africa before settling in the Comoros, where he overthrew two presidents within three years, then vanished. Weinberg treats Abderemane's assassination as a whodunit, not an entirely satisfactory approach, since all the witnesses were killed and even Denard's enemies didn't see him as the triggerman. Nonetheless this is an absorbing and well-told tale. Photos. (Feb.)