There's never been anyone quite like John Boyes, the most notorious of East Africa's pioneers. This is his true story, his firsthand accounts of exploits on the Dark Continent during the days of the most daring adventurers. There are lots of things you can say about John Boyes: he was a troublemaker. He was an ivory poacher. He was a hunter. He was a soldier. He was a scalawag. He was a king. He was a criminal. And, above all, he was an adventurer. If there was a fight, John Boyes was there, fists flying. If there was money to be made, legally or illegally, Boyes was always first in line. If there was a desert to be crossed, a jungle to be tamed, a government to be swindled, a local tribe to be befriended or exploited, you could count on John Boyes.