The duo’s journey continues undersea by submarine, and by motorcycle on land, through dangerous townships where they encounter a herd of ferocious elephants, vengeful villagers, and more angry pirates. Los is an inventor with a brilliant mind and a good heart, and despite his very reckless nature, Alfred invites Los to join him on his travels. I reached the top of the stairs, took a glance over the edge, took one step, and flung myself off.”Īfter Alfred decides to tow the pirate’s boat full of guns and drugs out to sea to sink it, he rescues Los, a young African man who crashes into the ocean while flying a small plane he built himself and powers with vegetable oil. But I’d be an easy target for his knife….What were my other options? I tried to think. The water was so close, just a run and a jump. But I also kept imagining the knife sticking into my back. I kept thinking, maybe I could run for it. “I started walking towards the water, and he followed me. Roy is a master at creating suspenseful, nail-biting action:

After being attacked, battered, and bruised, Alfred narrowly escapes, but with the criminal’s stolen treasure in tow and several angry pirates in hot pursuit. The action begins quickly off the coast of Mozambique when Alfred encounters a vicious pirate, one of many that plague Africa’s east coast.

The complementary characters are also dynamic and well-rounded, though the pirates often appear stereotypical and one-dimensional. With Alfred’s integrity and sensitive disposition, his love of animals, and the courage he displays in the face danger, Roy has created an extremely likable protagonist. Alfred‘s thought-provoking voice is rich in rhythm and lulls the reader into a calm that mirrors the tranquility of smooth seas, then mercilessly thrusts the reader into heart-stopping action. His is aided by a quirky three-member crew – his dog, a seagull, and a parrot.

The story is seton the east coast of post-Apartheid South Africa, and narrated through the eyes of Alfred Pynsent, a young explorer aged 16, who travels the seas by a self-built submarine. The enchanting voice of the narrator-protagonist takes us on many exciting adventures on the high seas and onto the Dark Continent. Seas of South Africa is categorized as young adult, but the exotic locale will intrigue readers of all ages. If the Life of Pi is one of your favourite novels, then you will love Philip Roy’s Seas of South Africa,– the sixth book of the Submarine Outlaw Series.

Submarine outlaw series