Pick the gift of books this Father's Day

Africa, 1906: A young Australian adventurer is condemned to death.

Sydney, the present: journalist Nick Eatwell has just lost his job, but his day is brightened when a fellow reporter, South African Susan Vidler, comes into his life looking for his help with a story. Spanning two centuries, Ghosts of the Past is based on a true story. It's about love, war, buried treasure, shattered

Greed, danger and treachery are at the heart of Tony Park's 18th novel. Releasing in August, it follows Joanne Flack, a member of the Pretoria Cycad and Firearms Appreciation Society, suspected of stealing a rare African plant thought to be extinct and worth millions of dollars.

Can chaos and uncertainty breed opportunity? This is a question Bruce Whitfield answers in his book, The Upside of Down.

In a world of fake news, deepfakes, manipulated feeds of information and divisive social media agendas, it’s easy to believe that our time is the most challenging in human history. The book tells remarkable stories of extraordinary people and paints a picture of a South Africa very few people dare to imagine.

Remember his name: FBI Agent Amos Decker is back in a thrilling memory man investigation. From the number one bestselling author of The 6:20 Man, David Baldacci.

A town with a secret.

A lone hunter discovers the remains of a woman in North Dakota’s Badlands. She appears to have had a post-mortem performed on her, reminiscent of those only seen on TV shows – but there is no slab, morgue or camera in sight.

A victim without a past.

The FBI decide to investigate Irene Cramer's death, as key questions surface around her mysterious past. Little is known about this school teacher, where she came from or her true identity. But she clearly had something to hide.

A hero with a unique skill.

FBI investigator Amos Decker and his colleague, Alex Jamison, are summoned to seek answers. They travel to the local community of London, North Dakota – a town which sits at the very heart of the fracking industry. Enriched with oil money, jealousy and a deep-set rivalry lie beneath a veneer of glitz and opulence.

Decker soon realizes that the nearby ‘eye in the sky’, the Air Force Station, may hold the vital clues. And that this town holds secrets so explosive, they could destabilize the entire country . .

Walk the Wire by David Baldacci is the sixth book in the Amos Decker series. Continue the investigative thrillers with Long Shadows.

Once read, never forgotten.

World-renowned wildlife trackers Alex van den Heever and Renias Mhlongo have spent more than two decades working together, tracking leopards and lions at Londolozi, jaguars in South America and grizzly bears in the United States.

In Changing a Leopard’s Spots, Alex shares stories from his life with Renias, including the successes, failures, dramas, laughter, disappointments and highlights. As they experience numerous adventures, Alex and Renias learn to trust and rely on one another – both in order to stay alive, in a literal sense because of the sometimes dangerous environments in which they work, but also to develop a deep and meaningful relationship.

By challenging each other and learning from one another they break down social, cultural, racial and personal boundaries and obstacles that often divide South Africans; and in the process, the two men forge an unbreakable bond.