You know, I think until the last chapter of this book I was almost considering giving it 5 stars, and after the last chapter I was going to downgrade it to 2, such was the difference the last chapter made in how I felt about it. Against my better judgement I'm going to split the difference even though the final chapter really ruined my over-all impression of the book. I don't know how your tagline can be 'Love-whatever the cost' and end it the way it ended.

Ignoring the final chapter, there was lots about this book I liked. The setting at an archaeological dig in Kenya was fascinating, as was the history of the local Masai tribe and the politics between tribal law and 'white' law in the time period. It basically ticked a lot of boxes in terms of my own interests lie.

The main character is Natalie - a 20 something who joins the dig in Kenya of a renowned archaeologist Eleanor Deacon. Natalie is nursing her wounds after the death of her mother, estrangement from her father and the abandonment of her married lover and goes to the gorge to work.

An important discover is made almost immediately on her arrival and she suggests that before the scientists who made the discovery can jump the gun and publish their findings, that they compare the bones they found with more recent bones. The two doctors, unwilling to wait for proper procedure then go and raid a Masai grave, stealing bones in order to verify their findings.

The grave robbing is what sets the rest of the events of the book into motion as one of the doctors is murdered by a Masai man and Natalie is the only one who can identify that the man was in the vicinity of the murder scene.

The book for me is at its most successful when it is dealing with the cultural complexities between what is acceptable under different rules of law. There is a political under-current in the book, where you see scientists trying to broker ways in which to protect their findings, while placating two very different sides in a country on the brink of independence as both sides are attempting to get a foothold in the new Kenya and see the trial as a way to make it happen.

The characters were generally well rounded and complex. Natalie could have perhaps been a little less self-involved (I was almost at the stage of wanting to throttle her at times in the book for mentioning Dominic) and perhaps a little too rigid in her thinking regarding the multiple marriages acceptable in Masai society considering she, herself, had been quite happy to engaged in a relationship with a married lover. I would say that her appeal to the men around the camp was a little ridiculous, but they were in the middle of nowhere and she was an attractive, intelligent woman so I suppose options were limited considering the only other woman available was Eleanor who was in her 60's. ;)

The dynamics between Natalie and the Deacons - both with Eleanor and Eleanor's sons (Christopher and Jack) was pretty fascinating. Eleanor, the older matriarch of the archaeological world who ran her digs with an iron fist was actually extremely likeable for me, even as she riled Natalie up. Christopher, a quiet and introverted guy seemed almost fascinated with Natalie, but he was slow to act until his brother arrived and then it almost became more about his own jealous nature than anything else. Jack was charming, and intelligent and passionate and a very easy character to like and it was easy to see why Natalie was drawn to him (even if at times it wasn't always easy to see why he was drawn to Natalie.)

As I said, the book does a lot right and if it hadn't been for the ending then I think I would have really loved it. As it was, as a woman for me, it was extremely upsetting to see Jack's feelings so reliant on whether or not Natalie would give him an opportunity to procreate. Perhaps it's just me, but it really upset me a lot to not only read that she had lost her father and her unborn child, but that because, through no fault of her own, she had also lost the ability to have children that Jack would then take back his marriage proposal, leaving her on her own. Nothing like unconditional love.
( )

Overall, I liked this book about a scandal-plagued anthropological dig in early 1960s Kenya. I enjoyed the will they/won't they romance at the center of the story and the intrigue surrounding Natalie, the main character, and her colleagues on the dig. But while I found the history and science that surround the plot to be interesting and often necessary to the story as a whole, I do feel that the author could have found ways to more seamlessly fit it into the novel.

I was also somewhat surprised by what I thought to be an abrupt ending which wasn't really helped by the two paragraph note at the end of the book which included both factual anthropological information as well as a brief follow-up about the two main characters. ( )

I love most any book that can transport me to a place and a time other than my own; a book that I can get lost in. The Clouds Beneath the Sun is such a book. From the very first page I liked Natalie’s character and was interested in and intrigued by the excavation project she was joining as a team archaeologist. From the initial premise the book expanded to deal with social customs of the Masai, local politics, romance, history, mystery, adventure and more. It may seem like an ambitious undertaking but Mackenzie Ford was definitely capable of dealing with every challenge. I was completely enthralled by the events of the story and think most everyone I know would enjoy this book. It would definitely make a good book club selection because of the variety of topics that could be discussed. The only negative: it ended too soon.

I became fairly enthralled with this book when I reached about the second or third chapter. I felt that the author did a very good job of developing the characters: revealing just enough of what motivated them in order to lend them depth, while allowing the reader to come to their own conclusions about the rightness of each character's actions. I also was intrigued by the use of 1961 Kenya as the setting, which created a very politically charged backdrop for the overall mystery within the book. With all of these positives, however, I was still left with a slight feeling of having been cheated when I read the last page of the book; something felt both rushed and unfinished to me about the conclusion and some things that I thought would be answered were not even addressed again. ( )

An oddly engaging story set at an archeological dig in Kenya. It manages to combine a little bit of history (with Kenya's bid for independence), a murder mystery, conflict between Europeans and local tribes, an archeological discovery, and even a little romance. Somehow it manages all of this without becoming cluttered or without anyone part taking focus away from the rest of the story. Worth reading. ( )

Maybe I wasn't a good reviewer for this book. I am not into Africa, have any experience with Africa, or really care to I guess. Maybe that's why I couldn't get into this book, I'm not sure. Or maybe it's that it was Africa in the 1960s which I really couldn't get into. I wanted to like it, as others did, I just wasn't able to relate to the the time, setting, or characters. ( )

You can find quite an interesting group of people at an archeological dig in Kenya in 1961. This is where Natalie Nelson finds herself as part of a remote dig site in the Serengeti. Things are going great until the team runs into grave robbing and a murder that Natalie becomes a key witness of. But of course, that is not all. Natalie finds herself in a battle between two brothers - a competition that has been around for their entire lives.

I don't think anything I say can really do justice to this book. I feel as I was in Kenya, I felt the heat, I heard the animals, I smelled the Serengeti. There was a lot going on in Kenya in the early 60's and I was able to experience a little bit of all of it by reading this book.

The characters were engaging and dynamic, the setting was beautiful. My only complaint is that the author lingered over the political aspects of what was going on in the country in a way that I didn't understand at first.

4/5 ( )

This book about a woman archeologist in Kenya was very interesting and kept me guessing until almost the end. The characters were well developed and I could really picture the camp. I would read more by Ford. ( )

Books don't often shock me. I read so much that I seem to be in tune with the narrative flow, I see plot twists coming from miles away, and I'm good at spotting foreshadowing. However, in his second novel, Mackenzie Ford has created a story of such surprising richness that I closed it on the last page, then promptly began thinking if the surprises were fair, if they had been foreshadowed. I had to conclude that I had fair warning of the plot developments all the way through, which makes The Clouds Beneath the Sun all the more extraordinary. In fact, some events were foreshadowed, but I discounted them as impossible to pull off in a realistic fashion. How delighted I was to have been mistaken.

The book opens with Natalie Nelson taking her newly minted Cambridge Ph.D and broken heart to her first dig, in Kenya. Ford (a nom de plume for historian Peter Watson) eases us into the setting with Natalie passing elephants involved in a mourning ritual on the way to the remote camp. I actually had trouble getting into the book at first. An archaeological dig in 1961 Kenya is not an easy setting to evoke, and the "Attention: You Are Now In the 1960s!" details did not feel as effortlessly part of the story as the history and political climate of Kenya. (Examples: that newfangled birth control pill, friends of Natalie's who (gasp) live with men instead of marrying, Natalie's parents utter shock at her disastrous affair with a married man, the publication of Lolita, talk of men going to the moon.) And Natalie's mooning about Dom, her lover, is a bit overdone. However, once I'd made it through the set-up, I could not put this book down. Ford's Kenya is beautiful, vibrant, and complex, so well-drawn that I had no difficulty visualizing it. He lays out the political climate neatly. The moral complexity of the story means that I'm still thinking about the implications.

As Natalie and the others on the dig begin to make extraordinary discoveries in the gorge, she develops relationships with her colleagues. Eleanor, the widow of a celebrated paleontologist, wants to take Natalie under her wing, forcing a confidence that Natalie isn't sure she wants. Eleanor's two sons, Jack and Christopher, vie for her attention, as does Russell, an Australian on the dig. When Richard Sutton, Jr. is found murdered after he and Russell commit an unforgivable act against the Maasai, Natalie is thrust into the center of a political minefield, as the only witness who can implicate one of the Maasai. The tensions between the Maasai and the colonial paleontologists, between blacks and whites (some want a system of apartheid for Kenya, while other groups seek an integrated society, and still others want all the whites ejected), between English law and tribal custom, are absolutely riveting. Jack, having grown up in Africa, is an honorary Maasai, so his insights are invaluable. These are not easy questions posed by Ford, and he doesn't offer easy answers. The pressure on Natalie to refuse to testify in order to diffuse the political situation is not unwarranted, and she herself wavers between doing what is morally right to her, and doing what may be politically and culturally appropriate.

This is a morally complex novel that evokes a realistic picture of 1961 Kenya, of a country divided by race on the brink of independence, and of an impossible choice. I highly recommend it.

FTC Source Disclosure: I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. ( )

In 1961, Kenya was on the brink of independence. Racial and political tensions were high. It was also a time of enormous archeological discovery – the remains of man’s earliest ancestors. In the middle of civil conflict, of people divided, there is a common link – proof that we are all connected in ways that transcend skin color.

British archeologist Natalie Nelson arrives at a dig in remote Kenya. She is unwittingly running from her own personal problems, right into a murder that will capture the public’s eye and cause her to become a pawn on the national stage. Natalie is the key witness and everyone involved wants her to serve their own ends; she must wade through her own deeply felt values and decide which is the right thing to do. Meanwhile, to complicate things, Natalie is the _target of multiple romantic advances.

What I liked about this book are the decriptions of Africa; learning a little about the Masai people; and learning about a moment in history I know nothing about. Some of the dialogue among the archeological crew was interesting, as they debated professional ethics, and the research process. The ethical dilemmas were interesting as was the juxtaposition of differing cultures. In some ways, the tensions and conflicts represented in the book illuminate many of the difficulties we face in our radically “shrinking” world.

What bothered me was the idealized female lead character (Natalie) and the romantic hero, Jack. They are both repeatedly described as looking like movie stars (Veronica Lake and Montgomery Clift, for example). (It seems like the only people who don’t fall in love with Natalie are gay men.) Natalie and Jack sit back and smoke cigarettes and daintily sip whisky while drama unfolds around them. They are both just a little too perfect, a lot too-tragic, and so I found them annoying. I really didn’t “feel” the building romantic and sexual tension between them. I was completely unconvinced. Actually, as far as that goes, for all the drama in the story, the writing just didn’t convey much feeling at all (except for some reason, every time Natalie is emotionally worked up over something, her throat itches or waters or something that didn’t make any sense; I didn’t know what it meant, and certainly couldn’t identify with it). It felt way too much like some barely repressed 1950s film, rather than a brand new contemporary novel.

Nevertheless, it was a readable story; I found bits I liked and was able to take those away with me. Folks who like reading about Africa may very well enjoy this. ( )

I thought the descriptions of the countryside and the dig were excellent and compelling, however, I had a very hard time connecting w/any of the characters. The book was an interesting study of how to protect the ancient/tribal cultures while trying to advance science, which was an interesting counterpoint on archeology and the effects it may have on its surroundings.

The lead character, Natalie, was a little one dimensional for me, although by the end I was rooting for her. She was a little too clichéd for my liking; Natalie was written as the dead parent/broken heart/smart girl who gets away to find herself and a new love. I have to say though, that the ending was surprising and left me wondering about what happened to Natalie once I had closed the book-- which is my sign of a decent book; a decent book is one where I am left curious about the main character. (Note: my feeling is that a great book is one where I can't stop thinking about what happened to all of the characters and wish I could go back and touch base with them!).

This was an easy summer read, but I don't think I would expect too much more than that. ( )

I picked this book up - and put it down - several times. The descriptions of Africa - the people, the plants and the animals, I found to be beautiful and evocative. This book should have had it all - the elements were there - an exotic setting, archaeological discoveries, murders, romance, power struggles, jealousy, potentially fascinating characters. But all of the parts just did not come together for me. I wish otherwise, but I found this book ponderous and repetitive. ( )

Wow. What can I say about this book? Upon reading about this on Library Thing's Early Reviewer List it sounded fantastic, so I went with my instincts and took a chance on winning it. Well, as luck would have it, I won a copy. As luck would not have it, I couldn't even finish this book. It was definitely written by a talented author but the plot was not good at all and the heroine was very drab. So needless to say that this is one of my FEW negative reviews and was a book that I couldn't finish. ( )

I wanted so much to like this book, but it fell short for me. Overall I thought the plot was very interesting. However, especially during the first 150 pages of the book, I never really felt engaged or compelled to keep reading. I am not one to give up on a book, but I admit I struggled. The history and education the book provided was nice, but the pacing of the plot and some of the dialogue between characters turned me off. Toward the last half of the book, I did feel myself becoming more interested. If the right editor got their hands on this and helped even out the story, I think it could be a great book. But unfortunately for me, it was just so so. ( )

This was a VERY frustrating novel, because the plot and the ideas underlying it are extremely compelling, while the writing is blah and the execution uneven.

The story unfolds at a paleontological research camp in a Kenyan gorge, on the eve of independence in 1961/62, and the plot begins with a discovery and a murder and climaxes in a trial and its consequences. (The main characters seem to be very loosely based on the Leakey family, who excavated in Olduvai Gorge, in the sense that there's a family dynasty in charge of the dig.) The main character is Natalie Nelson, who has just received her doctorate at the same time her mother dies and her married lover leaves her, so Kenya is a great refuge. But it soon proves more than that, as she becomes the key witness in the murder trial, one which pits Kenya's white community against the Maasai, Kikuyu and other native inhabitants and highlights rival views of what the country's future may hold. But while the ideas are fascinating, the execution is flawed. Natalie spends a lot of time in repetitive agonizing over what the consequences of her testimony will be, and the love triangle at the heart of the book isn't always convincing (or well executed, in the sense of well written.) Few of the characters come alive. Had a very good editor gotten his or her hands on this and cut and shaped the narrative, it could have been a very good book. As it is, it's written in a rather pedestrian way, and while I'd recommend it, it would only be with some caution as it's a bumpy narrative. Still, if you're looking for something set in Kenya in this era, it's lively and it grabbed me. The problem, I think, is that despite all his books, Peter Watson (the author behind the nom de plume) simply isn't a natural storyteller. He has the instincts (i.e. can identify a great plot) but can't follow through. 3.5 stars; I've been generous overall, I think, because I was so fascinated by the setting and the ideas. (I also deducted about half a star for a couple of small but obvious and easily-avoided bloopers, such as the fact that the author has Natalie in attendance at Jesus College, Cambridge, nearly two decades before that institution admitted its first female undergraduates. Tsk, tsk.) ( )

It took me awhile to slog through this book, which I put aside for awhile in favor of something else. When I finally picked it up again, i skipped through the last 100 pages or so, and was treated to a fairly dismal ending. ( )

This book was of interest of me when I saw it in the Early Reviewers list because of the subject matter and the location; I love books that involve archeological digs and I don't know much about Africa and its history and thought it would be interesting to read a book that would help teach me.

While I did learn some history I did not know before I can't say I was enthralled with the book. I got through it but it wasn't a page turner. None of the characters had me really rooting for them and that makes it hard to really get behind a story.

The descriptions of Africa and the dig itself were well done and if this were a non-fiction book it might have done better. The writing style is easy, which is good. I could imagine myself in the settings so that does speak to the author's ability to set a scene as I have never been to Africa. ( )

I chose this book as one I'd be interested in reviewing through the Early Reviewers program based on the description. The setting of an archaeological dig in Kenya in 1961 was intriguing. Unfortunately, unlikeable characters, inane dialogue, a plodding storyline, and too much melodrama were not offset by the interesting details about African animals and terrain, and there wasn't enough information about the dig itself, or the background of Kenya's quest for independence at that time.

Mackenzie Ford is the pen name of British historian Peter Watson, who spent ten years recently as a research associate at the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge. The finds at the dig sound plausible, but the idea that two professional archaeologists would willfully desecrate a Masai burial ground (a major plot point), is not. His female protagonist, Natalie Nelson, is a cliche - first obsessing about her breakup with her married lover, then obsessing about sex. Apparently the isolation of the dig contributes to this, as three of the male archaeologists (including a pair of brothers) fall in love with the whiskey-swilling, cigarette-smoking Natalie, and two others (oddly, the two who die) are homosexuals. I just couldn't buy it.

At 448 pages, the book is too long by half that, and I had a hard time finishing the book - I only did because I needed to write this review. This is not a book I could re-read or recommend. ( )

The premise of this book was promising, but I had trouble connecting with the charcters and becoming emotionally invested. While Ford's writing was stylistically pleasant, I was bored with the plot and struggled to finish. ( )

I love most any book that can transport me to a place and a time other than my own; a book that I can get lost in. The Clouds Beneath the Sun is such a book. From the very first page I liked Natalie’s character and was interested in and intrigued by the excavation project she was joining as a team archaeologist. From the initial premise the book expanded to deal with social customs of the Masai, local politics, romance, history, mystery, adventure and more. It may seem like an ambitious undertaking but Mackenzie Ford was definitely capable of dealing with every challenge. I was completely enthralled by the events of the story and think most everyone I know would enjoy this book. It would definitely make a good book club selection because of the variety of topics that could be discussed. The only negative: it ended too soon. ( )

Set in the early 1960's, The Clouds Beneath the Sun revolves around Natalie Nelson, a freshly minted Ph. D. Suffering the loss of her mother, rejection of her father, and the breakup of her married boyfriend, Dr. Natalie Nelson heads to Africa to join an archaeological team digging in a Kenyan gorge. This digging season proves to be the most intense the experienced team has ever had. Two team members raid the ancient bural grounds of the local Massai tribe in order to have modern bones for comparison to the bones they have discovered. One of them is murdered. From there, problems arise in many forms: criminal, moral, and political; with romance and natural dangers thrown in for good measure.

I truly enjoyed The Clouds Beneath the Sun. The story never felt rushed or contrived. At over 450 pages, the author took his time to develop the story and the characters, as well as the believable setting. Although most of the book takes place either in the camp or in Nairobi, some of the best and most memorable parts of the book take place in the bush, at a secret lake, saving wildebeests, and over Christmas break in Lamu. Massai culture is touched upon, but certainly not a strong theme in this book.

Almost 4 stars for me! ( )

I was very excited to receive this book, The subject matter involving archeology, then a murder, along with the cultural influence of the Massai people, sounded very promising. I did enjoy the writing style Mr. Ford has, but found that I wasn't all that interested in the characters of the book, or the plot. I found that I was just reading the book to finish it, not to truly find out what was going to happen. I laid the book aside a couple of times, then picked it back up to read some more. I could not finish it. I'm very disappointed as I really wanted to love this book. I will try another book by Mackenzie Ford, as I've read great reviews on his other work. ( )

An archeologist excavation in Kenya filled with brilliant paleontologists is the setting of the book…the characters' work, cultural differences, and inter-personal relationships encompasses the main plot. In the first few pages the main character, Natalie Nelson, is on her way from Cambridge University to the camp, and she comes across a herd of elephants actually carrying out a mourning ritual...her first glimpse of the mesmerizing sights and sounds of Africa. The descriptions of the wildlife in Africa and the land itself was vividly and beautifully described by Mackenzie Ford.

When Natalie does arrive at the camp site, she is happy to see everyone has his/her own tent with private bath facilities. This is especially comforting the following evening since she didn't get a warm welcome at dinner as a result of her being the novice paleontologist and making a comment that was viewed as criticism of one of the veteran archeologists.

Just as things got better with that situation, and as the excavating continued, two veteran paleontologists, Richard and Russell, do something unthinkable, and a murder occurs. The sole witness happens to be Natalie. Natalie tries to relax and forget about the trial each night with a drink and a cigarette while listening to the African animals that circle the camp. The trial gets pretty complicated and worrisome for Natalie....a plea made to the Maasai chief concerning the trial is denied....the legal and cultural issues are of the utmost concern.


The book was a little slow, but does become a lot better in terms of "action" as you turn the pages to the final chapters....the focus of the archaeological dig, the murder trial, Natalie's turmoil dealing with it, the power of money, societal issues within Africa, relationship issues among a group of people working and living together, personal secrets, and family issues that included sibling rivalry, betrayal, and deceit keep your interest.

It wasn't a riveting novel, but it was intense at times, and it did bring you culturally into another very interesting society. The characters were well developed, and you could feel their pain, fear, triumphs, comradery, and all emotions that may have been felt from living in the middle of a beautiful, exotic African landscape. Being a passionate, knowledgeable paleontologist would have been even more helpful for enjoying the book.

My rating is a 4/5 because the "dig" was very interesting and the cultural aspect made you think how we are all the same, but also different. Even though the ending depicted the beautiful symbolism of the Maasai people, it will haunt you and make you realize what cunning, cruel, jealous, self-motivated creatures we humans can be. ( )

When Dr. Natalie Nelson arrives in Kenya at the archealogical dig of her dreams, little does she know how much her world will change. It's 1961 and against a backdrop of quite a bit of political and social strife as Kenya begins its' journey to independence, the very existence of the Deacon's Kihara dig is jeopardized by murder. The tribal customs of the Masai are well presented as are many of the dig protocols. I found this methodical pace to be daunting at times, but I suppose the pace echoes the care and slowness carried out on a dig. ( )

I gave up on this book after 300 pages. I desperately wanted to like this book. The setting was interesting and the plot line had promise. Unfortunately, the pacing dragged and the dialogue was horribly stilted. I finally put the book down when I realized that wanting to know how it ended was still not enough of a reason to finish. Perhaps Ford should stick to non-fiction. ( )