Random Violence

Praise for Random Violence

“Jade de Jong kicks ass.”
—NPR

“A new generation of crime writers is trying to put apartheid and modern South Africa in focus . . . [Random Violence is] a thought-provoking book.”
—Portland Oregonian

“Mackenzie, who has lived in South Africa from an early age, plays her hand deftly, with a page turner of a story, intriguing characters—Jade is particularly memorable—and a wealth of South African color, including its appalling racial history. At once brutal and beautiful, Random Violence leaves nothing to chance in hooking the reader.”
—Richmond Times-Dispatch

“With surprising characters and an intriguing plot, you’ll be guessing right up until the very end.”
—Tulsa Examiner

“South African writer Mackenzie has created a strong female character with amazing resilience, unusual friends, and incredible luck . . . Gripping.”
—Library Journal, Starred Review

“Set in contemporary South Africa, Mackenzie’s triumphant debut introduces PI Jade de Jong . . . The plot has more than its fair share of nice twists, and Mackenzie does a superb job of making the reader care for her gutsy lead while offering a glimpse at life in South Africa after apartheid. Readers will wish Jade a long fictional career.”
—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“Beautiful and haunting . . . Each chapter is filled with wonders and horrors masterfully told in darkly poetic prose, with absolutely no wastage of space permitted. She has created a terrific and believable P.I. in the headstrong and somewhat intimidating Jade de Jong; a P.I. we will no doubt be seeing plenty of in the future. A host of colorful and memorable characters fill the pages, alongside Jade, making this a gripping and page-turning read, despite the bleakness of place and events via post-apartheid South Africa.”
—New York Journal of Books

“Complicated and tough and real.”
—Boston Bibliophile