In the Shadow of Kilimanjaro — Alexis Mantheakis

Handsome Emmanuel Makris, a former teenage stowaway put ashore in turn-of-the-century colonial East Africa is now the master of a large fortune and the most eligible bachelor in the colony. In the small tropical seaside town of Tanga social life revolves around the Africa Hotel. There an illegal backroom gambling den is to play a decisive role after Emmanuel meets Andrea, the stunning blonde daughter of an impoverished German count and countess. Matters are further complicated with the arrival of a new plantation manager from Depressionâ€"struck rural California with his wife and 17 year-old daughter,Tina. IN THE SHADOW OF KILIMANJARO is a three-generation saga telling the story of a rags-to-riches family and of privileged lives led in a closely-knit society. Steamy love affairs and a scandal that goes beyond the tolerant mores of Kenya's white community signal the passing of the last heady days of the British Empire and the emergence of a new post-independence Africa where dramatic new challenges face the Makris heir after a long-lost childhood African friend arrives unnanounced at his flat in London with a strange demand.