Review: The Napoleon of Africa by Phil Smart

The Napoleon of Africa will be my giveaway book for March.

The Napoleon of Africa is set in the early 1800's after Napoleon's fall. A time when many military trained men had to seek a new career.

Royal Naval Commander Stephen Cowen, with his wife and three children, set sail for India and a new life. Their ship encounters a violent storm off the coast of East Africa and the three children, Nathaniel 16, Andrew 14 and Beatrice 12, are swept overboard in a longboat.

What follows is a riveting story of survival on a deserted beach and then discovery and welcoming into the Zulu tribe of Shaka as advisors to the king.

I really enjoyed how Phil Smart cleverly included the three children into the true story of Shaka and his rule of the Zulu nation.

The Napoleon of Africa is a truly engrossing story. Phil Smart's writing is immersive. He writes through lived experience having spent months in the African bush and this shows through in a plot that is filled with tension. I soon became invested, not only in the lives of the Cowen children, but also the Zulu tribesmen and women.

The story is narrated by multiple characters which gives a rounded view of how the plot is developing.

The majority of the story is with the Zulu tribe with tribal wars, witch doctors, spirits and superstitions. The children become a valuable commodity when Nathaniel introduces western warfare, from his experience in the Naval Academy, into the lives of the Zulu warriors.

Simmering through the story is the question of whether the children will ever be rescued and be reunited with their parents.

The Napoleon of Africa has it all; wild battle scenes, deception, betrayal and murder. The plot moves along at a steady pace.

The world of the Zulu's was beautifully described with the sparseness and serenity of the land set against the brutality of tribal warfare.

It took me a few pages to get into the author's writing style but I find this with every book I read where the author has their own distinct style.

I would recommend The Napoleon of Africa to readers of Wilbur Smith's novels or anyone who enjoys a good battle story or historical fiction set in Africa.

My rating 4 /5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Publisher: Self Published

Publication date:  20th July 2025

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 368

RRP: $30.00AU (paperback)

Source: courtesy of the author

The book can be ordered directly from the author's website: 

https://philsmartauthor.com.au/