The blazing, untold story of a man who lived in the orbit of a giant, and finally managed to escape the sun.

For decades, Peter Venison stood in the shadow of the volcanic brilliance of Sol Kerzner, the hotel-world titan whose vision reshaped skylines and rewrote the rules of luxury. Together they conjured empires: Sun City, the Lost City, Atlantis, the Royal Mirage. But this isn’t just a backstage pass to the world’s most audacious resorts. It’s a memoir of survival – of ambition, obsession, loyalty, betrayal, and the strange gravity of genius.

Venison takes us from bombed-out Beirut to deals forged in the palaces of Dubai; from boardroom battles waged in London basements to working with designers like Giorgio Armani who demanded perfection down to the last pleat.

We watch the corporate wars that followed Venison’s acrimonious breakup with Sol, fought across continents and fuelled by egos. Beyond the fireworks, this book reveals a world few outsiders ever glimpse: post-apartheid power broking in Alexandra shebeens; the birth of Tsogo Sun; royal dinners at Windsor Castle; Mandela and Muhammad Ali leaving rooms breathless with grace.

Bold,witty,reflective and fiercely candid, ESCAPING THE SUN is not just the story of an empire-builder’s right-hand man – it’s a memoir about Venison stepping out of Kerzner’s blaze, reclaiming his light and understanding that the real legacy of a life well lived isn’t just the monuments built, but the meaning found beyond them.

Sol Kerzner, the controversial and charismatic business tycoon, once dominated the Southern African tourism landscape. He left an indelible mark by developing dream destinations like Sun City, The Palace, and the Atlantis developments in the Bahamas and Dubai.

In this riveting memoir, Venison – Sol’s longtime associate, confidante, and eventual adversary – offers an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the life of Kerzner whose legacy has long been shrouded in mystery, with no comprehensive biography until now. Venison fills in the gaps with vivid personal anecdotes and exclusive details, including the little-known relationship between Kerzner and Mandela, which played a crucial role in South Africa’s political transition in the early 1990s.

This tour de force unveils the true Kerzner – the brilliant, magnetic, chain-smoking, whiskey-drinking workaholic – who transcended borders and became a key player in the international hospitality industry and South Africa’s own Sun King.