Zanzibar - Giles Foden

'Zanzibar . . . The name itself, languid and conspiratorial, was a kind of illusion. It seemed to speak of the heart's desire, of that yearning for paradise which is itself a sign we are fallen - that we are in the dirty realm of history, of actuality, of fact.'The year is 1998. Nick Karolides is a marine biologist working on coral reef protection off Zanzibar - the East African island of slaves, sultans and spices that for centuries has signified both the exotic and the malevolent. Soon he meets Miranda Powers, an American who works in the US embassy in nearby Dar-es-Salaam. Nick and Miranda find themselves embroiled in a terrorist conspiracy, one with which CIA veteran Jack Queller has an ancient connection.In Zanzibar, the prize-winning author Giles Foden draws on current events in order to create a contemporary historical novel of dazzling virtuosity. Both an investigation of the idea of paradise and a powerfully dramatic political thriller, it features Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda organisation long before 'September 11' made them notorious. Zanzibar is a book which couples Giles Foden's unique feel for history with his gifts for satire and description, in a story which takes us from the cradle of mankind to the emergent new world order.