This June, Cranthorpe Millner Publishers is proud to spotlight an unforgettable story of love, war, and courage. For a limited time, from 17th to 21st June, readers can discover DJG Palmer’s remarkable Babanango trilogy at an unmissable discount:
- Download book one, A Rougher Task, for FREE
- Get your hand on book two, In the Ranks of Death, for just 99p
- Experience the epic finale, The Washing of the Spears, for only 99p
Whether you’re a fan of gripping historical fiction, moving LGBTQ+ stories, or heart-wrenching romance, this series offers something rare and resonant – an epic love story forged in the depths of the Anglo-Zulu War.
About DJG Palmer
DJG Palmer (he/him) is a former serviceman and LGBTQ+ author whose own experiences in the military before the lifting of the ban on gay personnel deeply inform the emotional landscape of his writing. Born in Kent and inspired by both family history and personal loss, Palmer blends rich historical detail with deeply human themes of identity, resilience, and love. His dedication to portraying the hidden stories of gay servicemen brings a unique and powerful voice to historical fiction.
Inside the Babanango trilogy
Book 1 – A Rougher Task (download now for FREE)
The series opens in 1878, with young Lieutenant Albert Bond, aristocratic, conflicted, and weighed down by family disgrace, stationed at the Chatham barracks. There, he meets Jack Coleman, a working-class batman whose wit, optimism, and quiet courage unsettle and captivate him.
As their regiment ships out to the sultry battlefields of South Africa, the two men find themselves caught between military duty and the slow, undeniable pull of something deeper. But in a time of brutal colonial warfare and institutionalised prejudice, their affection could mean disgrace, or worse.
An evocative, slow-burn beginning to a trilogy full of tension, heart, and hope.
Book 2 – In the Ranks of Death (only 99p)
Now stationed at Fort Penfold, Bond and Coleman navigate an increasingly fractured regiment, and a relationship that becomes harder to hide. War brings not only physical danger, but emotional devastation: grief, betrayal, and a growing fear that the cost of love might be too great to bear.
The novel also deepens themes of race, class, and religion, all while introducing unforgettable new characters and escalating the stakes. Tensions rise not just on the battlefield, but in the friendships and rivalries within their ranks.
This is a novel about courage, not only in battle, but in facing one’s truth.
Book 3 – The Washing of the Spears (only 99p)
The trilogy concludes in devastating fashion as the Anglo-Zulu War reaches its climax. Injuries, heartbreak, and sacrifice follow Bond and Coleman as they fight to protect each other, even when the threat of exposure grows unbearable.
With haunting realism and poignant grace, Palmer brings the love story to its conclusion: will their bond survive the horrors of war? Or will it become another casualty in a world that refuses to accept it?
An unforgettable, cathartic ending to a trilogy of rare emotional power.
Why should you read the Babanango trilogy this Pride Month?
2025 marks 25 years since the UK lifted its ban on gay people serving openly in the armed forces. Palmer’s trilogy is both a tribute and a reminder of the lives lived in silence, of the love stories erased or hidden, and of the resilience it takes to simply be seen.
Babanango is historical fiction at its most personal, written with the sensitivity of lived experience and the scope of a true epic.
Start your journey with Albert and Jack today and discover a love story you’ll never forget.
