Rudie van Rensburg Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Rudie Van Rensburg is a bestselling thriller, mystery, and crime fiction author, artist, painter, and playwright from South Africa. The author was born in Bloemfontein in 1951 and went to the city’s Central High School.

The author then went to Unisa for his communication science degree and then got a bachelor’s degree from the University of the Free State.

The author began working at Die Volksblad as a journalist during the 1970s, before he quit to become a publisher and cofounder of Bloemnuus. This was Free State’s first free weekly paper that was published for several years before it became defunct.

Rudie would then work as the editor of the nationwide business magazine “Die Ekonoom.” He was also associated with the public relations bureau of the University of the Free State before he joined Sanlam and moved to Cape Town in 1987.

In the two decades he spent at Sanlam, he would take on two roles that included senior manager in charge of advertising. He was also the head of promotions and sponsorships and publisher of Sanlam Club’s customer magazine.

In 2008, Rudie Van Rensburg wrote “Die Begrafnis” under the name Phil Janse. In that same year, the playwright won the best playwright Sanlam Prize for Afrikaans Theater.

The play went on to become so popular that it would be performed in most Afrikaans art festivals that were performed in that year and several in the following year.

The play “The Burial” would also be later published by Genugtig! Publishers in book form a few years later.

In 2009, Rudie decided to get into children fiction when he self-published “Die Doempies van Tafelberg” which he wrote for toddlers.

An interesting thing about the work was that the author wrote and illustrated it himself. It went on to become a very popular work that is loved by toddlers all across the world.

Van Rensburg published “Slagyster” his debut long-form work of fiction in 2013. The work also did very well and was nominated for several awards. The work made the finals for the 2013 Jan Rabie Rapport Prize in South Africa.
“Slagyster” also made the final shortlist for the ATKV-Woordveertjies Prize for Thriller Literature.

When Rudie Van Rensburg is not writing his novels, he loves to paint. Painting is something that he has been doing for more than two dozen years.

During that time, he has had his works featured in several exhibitions in South Africa. His paintings have also been included in exhibitions in countries such as New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, the United States, Britain, and Germany.
The author is married and has three children named Amieke, Neil, and MC.

“Hans Crosses the Rubicon” by Rudie Van Rensburg is the story of Hans, a 90-year-old man who loves all on his own. He is a very healthy but stubborn man who loves to be independent.

His children live abroad with family and often worry about him being all alone at the old family home. They decide to send him to a nursing home and suddenly Hans finds himself having to live with sick and old people forgotten and waiting to die.
He did everything he could to stop the move but his children are just as stubborn as him and he is finally moved to Huis Adeliefie.

It is not long before he is making friends and the new friends are soon coming up with all manner of mischief to undermine the angry matron and the rules.

He is hoping that by causing a lot of fracas, he can be kicked out so that he can finally leave and go back home. However, leaving will not be that simple as one does not even have enough money for an apartment.

Hans and his new buddies act like a bunch of mischievous school children as they get into all manner of adventures. From secret organizations to hunger strikes the staff at the home have a tough time trying to keep them in check.

Rudie Van Rensburg’s novel “Headshot” introduces Kassie Kasselman who has been struggling with health issues for quite some time now.

According to the doctors, he needs to exercise, eat healthily and stop taking coffee, and switch to rooibos tea if he is to get better. The good thing is that he has been invited to the annual stamp festival as a guest exhibitor.

But then they start getting reports that there is a killer taking out white men by shooting them in the head. Nobody knows his motive since his victims have nothing in common except for the fact that they are of similar ages.

Could they be facing a serial killer? Kassie is doubtful of that but even though they investigate Columbo style they can not seem to get any meaningful clues fast enough. Moreover, she also has to deal with a forgery case which is proving too hard to crack.

She is still working with Rooi Els her faithful sidekick who always provides some great insights that help the investigation along.

It is a nail-biting novel with a fast-paced plot that will have readers on the edge of their seats.

“Sledgehammer” by Rudie Van Rensburg is the story of Ryan Deetlets, who is currently in the Niger Delta forests. At the opening of the story, the man who works for the greedy Star Petro organization has been kidnapped.

He was unlucky enough to have been taken by a rebel group that is known to have already taken out several oil workers. Van Dyk, Malan, and Haarhoff Transport in Cape Town is a very successful business.

The three owners will soon come into a lot of money. They have been working with henchmen in the smuggling trade in Nigeria and with henchmen from the SAPS.

Carl had long retired from active service and now lived in the karoo running an olive farm. He believes he is done with the shadow life and police mole drug dealing. Things get very interesting when his ex-boss turns up with a request he can not pass up.

But doing the job would mean that he would have to interact and work with some of the most unscrupulous villains in the country.