A thrilling coming-of-age tale, Rhinoceros Summer is hard to put down. Thornton deftly handles the heartbreaking loss of Lydia's innocence, and the triumph of wisdom gained.

If you like:
Safaris
Endangered species
Life and death struggles
A well-rounded antagonist
A healthy sprinkle of romance ( )

Lydia Gibbs is the daughter of a mild-mannered pastor and his wife. As such, she feels that she is type-cast by her classmates as the goody-two-shoes kind of girl. Lydia’s passion, however, is what drives her. Her passion is photography. She wants to work for National Geographic and take pictures that will make global impact. The summer she graduates from high school, Lydia finds herself in a dead-end job but she’s trying to save money to buy a good camera. Meanwhile, in Tanzania, a former classmate of Pastor Gibb is in a financial bind. Paul is a PH (short for professional hunter), having left his seminary days far behind him. He needs a photographer to film his safaris in order to gain rich clients and thus keep Blue Nile Resort and Safaris in business. Things only go from bad to worse when the man from the Wildlife Division is arrives to audit the safaris, especially since it is Paul’s own son Caleb who shows up. Needless to say things are not good between the two and haven’t been. Paul contacts Pastor Gibb and asks if Lydia might want to come to Tanzania and shoot safari photos – of course he can’t afford to pay her but the experience should be worth something. Lydia is thrilled to accept the offer in spite of her parents misgivings. Even better the congregation pulls together to provide camera and equipment for Lydia.

In Tanzania, Lydia faces the real world for the first time. From a scare at the airport upon her arrival, to being used as bait for the gentlemen clients, to ultimately facing the gritty reality of dying animals – even endangered ones – Lydia finds her strength and makes the most of the situation going so far as to having feelings for Caleb.

Rhinoceros Summer is a real world book that sheds light on the atrocities of killing animals just for their trophies (tusks, antlers, heads, etc). The culture of the Tanzanians is brought to the fore as rich Westerners demand the amenities of home while stalking their prey. Through it all is the coming-of-age of a young girl brought up in the sheltered culture of her religion.

I immensely enjoyed this book. After the first several chapters I found I couldn’t put it down. When I reached the conclusion, I found I wanted to know more about these well-developed characters. I sincerely hope Ms. Thornton is writing a sequel.

Word of caution: the safari scenes where the animals are hunted can be brutal. ( )

This is an intense coming of age story about a sheltered young woman who is drawn into the wilds of Africa. Lydia is the daughter of a pastor and has lived in a loving, if confined world. Her father is contacted by an old missionary friend, about Lydia coming to take pictures of projects related to fundraising. Given Lydia's passion for photography, her father thinks this will be an incredible opportunity and arranges for his church to fund her "mission".

The only part that comes close to anyone's expectation is that Lydia's journey is incredible. Her parent's friend, Paul, left God behind a long time ago. His god is the thrill of a hunt. He will do anything to save his big game resort, including using Lydia and his own son to achieve his ends. Lydia is plagued by dangers of the two-legged and 4-legged variety, yet despite these dangers she finds herself and a new path in life.

This is not a flashy story. It is not a story with extreme world building. This is a story about growth. It has all it needs to show you that growth: background stories, excellent supporting characters and catalysts for change.

To tell you much more would ruin elements of how the story unfolds.

I received this book as a giveaway from Library Thing. ( )

The cover for this novel grabbed me. It just “worked.”

Rhinoceros Summer unfolds as an adventure story. At first the adventure is in seventeen-year-old Lydia's mind: escaping a restrictive family into the glamorous life of a photographer, getting pictures published in the (USA) National Geographic, for instance.

Caleb, a little older than Lydia, has grown up with adventure, living in Africa, trailing after his wild life hunter father, learning to shoot at age five, and never looking back, at least until recently.

Then there's Caleb's father, Paul, a narcisist who cons people into doing whatever he wants to accomplish his purpose of the moment (usually something very dangerous).

These three characters journey through the events of this story carrying their own hurts, longings, anger, rebellion, and interacting in potentially fatal ways.

Thornton has written this tale well, using a fast pace and suspense effectively to the very end. For people who dream of safaris and other types of adventure, this is a novel you will enjoy, with lots of action. The author does not stop with action, though; her characters live and make choices, and some of them learn a lot about life and grow up.

I did feel that Lydia's character could have been stronger in the beginning so that her transformation would feel a little more true to life.

I won an e-copy from the author of this novel on LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

This story certainly held my attention. It's about hunting/safaris in Tanzania, Africa. Since I've never been on a safari, I learned a lot about several aspects, especially hunting endangered species.

There is light romance between a very young photographer anxious to get the best pictures possible for future use in establishing a career in photography and the young son of the crooked owner, Paul, of the resort from which the safaris originate. There are strong characters and the main ones are well-developed. This book is so well-written that I found myself intensely disliking Paul as much as I loved several of the other characters. This is the way a good author makes me feel!

The novel is suspenseful and the author's descriptions of the locations, jungles, and actions of the hunters were right on! Some of the details are gory but this is a dangerous sport. I hesitate to use the word "sport" since animals are being injured or killed.

After finishing, I felt as though I had been on an adventure and what is better than that? 4 Stars. ( )