Cry of the Rocks by Pixie Emslie

The mystique of mining has always fascinated people. Cry of the Rocks is a novel about the issues and dangers of deep rock mining. It describes life at Nkuti, a modern deep-rock platinum mine in post-apartheid South Africa, and takes the reader into the depths of the earth, to the grueling work-face as well as to the harsh reality of life above ground. But Cry of the Rocks is also a thriller, which includes kidnapping, a murder and an international conspiracy. With its modern multi-racial mix of characters, the story probes deeply into the lives of the people of Nkuti, where a mysterious man threatens the miners into sabotaging the mine while also carrying out two kidnappings. Then a series of rock bursts trap dozens of miners below ground. Can the miners be saved? The novel gives good insight into mining, as shift upon shift of thousands of hard men descend into the bowels of the earth to pick and blast their way through tons of rock in conditions of heat, humidity, lack of air and light.