When zoo director James Rivers imports a collection of rare and endangered animals from Burma for the Royal Prince Albert Zoo in Sydney he unleashes a whorl of chaotic and murderous events he could never have anticipated. All unfolds before the cameras of David Attenborough’s film crew and an old friend, assistant producer Nikiya Adams, who is unwittingly drawn into the action. It’s the 1970s and thrown into the mix are questionable politics; protesters; drugs; exotic animals; a cast of thousands (almost), and a cameo from David Attenborough himself; a little sex; a lot of action; copious plot twists and turns; a high body count (and we’re not just talking animals here); and the requisite colourful characters and red herrings to keep the reader guessing. Alan Mills’ well-researched and multi-layered follow up to The Raft is edge-of-the-seat stuff. While at times the plot does get a little convoluted and lost in facts and figures, City Of Animals is an ambitious and accomplished suspense novel with an underlying message of environmental relevance. Above all, though, it’s a rollicking read and a novel with enough originality to see it become a welcome addition to any thriller fan’s collection.

Deborah Crabtree is a Melbourne-based fiction writer and bookseller

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2008, Thorpe-Bowker

Tags: alan mills