“White Leopard is the nickname attached to private investigator Solo Camera who has fled France after a "misunderstanding," and is now residing in Mali, the homeland of his father. In France he is seen as black, in spite of his white mother. Corruption is the norm in Mali government and police hierarchy, so Justice is relatively illusive, unless someone like Solo is on the job.
Like many literary detectives that have preceded him, Solo is a flawed and wounded soul. He is alone and still grieving the violent loss of his wife and son, but still notices the ladies, who notice him right back. His intuitive skills are well honed, not to mention his skills with firearms and hand to hand fighting with the bad guys when called for.
The case that is introduced early in the book is brought by an attractive woman, perhaps Moroccan he thinks, who turns out to be a lawyer from France. She needs his help to get her sister out of jail. The sister was arrested with a suitcase full of cocaine right before boarding a plane to Paris and the help she needs is delivery of a bribe to the police.
Solo takes the case, against his better judgement, and of course it becomes more complex, confusing and dangerous immediately. Guillaume's descriptions are detailed, provoking vivid images of beauty and squalor, memories associated with odors, both good and offensive, and a real sense of the oppressive heat that permeates Mali. Working relationships, both at his home and professionally, are nuanced and provide insight into Solo's more noble nature, a side he keeps sublimated, sometimes even from himself.
Wiener's translation from the French reads very naturally in English. There is no doubt as to the hard boiled, edgy style of Solo's investigative work as he sometimes skirts the law to achieve resolution in a case that is far more dangerous and far reaching than he at first realizes.