The First Rule of Survival

Set against the richly described backdrop of Cape Town, this chilling psychological thriller reveals its terrible secrets, each one more shocking than the last.

Seven years ago in Cape Town three young white South African schoolboys were abducted in broad daylight on three consecutive days. They were never heard of again.
Now, a new case for the unpredictable Colonel Vaughn de Vries casts a light on the original enquiry; for him, a personal failure which has haunted him for those seven years and has cost him his marriage and peace of mind.

A former British government agent, friend to De Vries, provides intelligence on this new case, but is any of it admissible? Struggling in a mire of departmental and racial rivalry, De Vries seeks the whole truth and unravels a complex history of abuse, deception and murder. Challenging friends, colleagues and enemies, De Vries comes to realise he doesn't know who is which.

Set against the background of Cape Town and the endless, rolling South African veld, this chilling thriller reveals layer after layer of abuse – physical, political and psychological.