Set at the end of the nineteenth century, this sweeping, epic love story traces the doomed relationship of two young people against the backdrop of a British Empire bracing itself against political opposition. As a boy, Frank had to leave his beloved India when his mother was assaulted by a British officer and accidentally shot when Frank tried to intervene. After his father dies of shame and a broken heart, Frank must make his way to England, sustained only by the determination to revenge himself on the man responsible for destroying his family as soon as he's old enough to become a soldier himself. Grace is the privileged daughter of an industrial magnate, but following her heart and her head makes her a champion of those oppressed by masters of the empire like her father, and so she too finds she has lost her family. As the pair fall in love, there is only one thing standing in the way of true happiness - Frank's vow of revenge...
Distant Thunder
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Book Description
A forbidden love. A vow of revenge. And an empire on the brink of war.
About the Author
Tim Griggs has lived and worked on four different continents. Born in London, he settled for twenty years in Australia. He now lives in Oxford.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Mike Park
Format:Kindle Edition
Distant Thunder: Jewel In The Crown meets Bleak House meets Zulu. TD Griggs' masterful storytelling maintains the reader in its grip throughout his narrative, both taut and sensual, surging through 600 pages of roller-coaster heartbreak and high adventure. His powers of description bring to life the scents and sounds of nights in India, the tensions of a rich household in Victorian England - and fear of a great battle in Africa to come. To read Distant Thunder is to experience it all.
After finishing this novel, I could not bear to start another, so I read it again, immediately.
After finishing this novel, I could not bear to start another, so I read it again, immediately.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Well, I did enjoy this book - but my warning is that I turned a good many pages to just get on with the story. Way. TOO. Many. ...for a published author charging full price for a book.
So, this could have been a four star, even a five star book, but it merits a three, despite a cracking good tale, because it is simply too long and drags the reader down in page after page of dialogue that is a history lesson - not a plot.We can read history in books. And the structure is sloppy. Sorry. Plain sloppy.
The plot is strong and has a real quest to get your teeth into : Frank sees terrible event as child, life ruined and seeks revenge. His climb has everything to engage you and we root for him. The scenes in India and Sudan and poverty in London are beautifully done. All that is cracking. There are some truly terrific twists and turns. Masterful ones.
Only just as we are into Frank - in comes the implausible and dreary Grace. Only our author does not do this with: chapter Frank, chapter Grace or parts one and two, no, we get three chapters Frank, then two chapters Grace or a chapter each...that is sloppy, easy writing and a craftsman has to work harder- the result is just as we are hooked on Frank, we get Grace...and we turn pages.
Grace is the poor little rich girl with socialist views. She isn't plausible as a character in period because while girls of her class may have had liberal views they also had a sense of entitlement and none of that comes over. She just isn't complex enough. And some of the things she does, I won't go into as spoiler, are wholly out of period.
So, frankly, I didn't give a damn about her.
There is too much dialogue and I counted at one point 5 pages of dialogue of history lesson. It slowed the plot down.... Read more ›
So, this could have been a four star, even a five star book, but it merits a three, despite a cracking good tale, because it is simply too long and drags the reader down in page after page of dialogue that is a history lesson - not a plot.We can read history in books. And the structure is sloppy. Sorry. Plain sloppy.
The plot is strong and has a real quest to get your teeth into : Frank sees terrible event as child, life ruined and seeks revenge. His climb has everything to engage you and we root for him. The scenes in India and Sudan and poverty in London are beautifully done. All that is cracking. There are some truly terrific twists and turns. Masterful ones.
Only just as we are into Frank - in comes the implausible and dreary Grace. Only our author does not do this with: chapter Frank, chapter Grace or parts one and two, no, we get three chapters Frank, then two chapters Grace or a chapter each...that is sloppy, easy writing and a craftsman has to work harder- the result is just as we are hooked on Frank, we get Grace...and we turn pages.
Grace is the poor little rich girl with socialist views. She isn't plausible as a character in period because while girls of her class may have had liberal views they also had a sense of entitlement and none of that comes over. She just isn't complex enough. And some of the things she does, I won't go into as spoiler, are wholly out of period.
So, frankly, I didn't give a damn about her.
There is too much dialogue and I counted at one point 5 pages of dialogue of history lesson. It slowed the plot down.... Read more ›
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By boomba
Format:Hardcover
This book is responsible for some sleep deprivation in my house, as there were a few late nights when I just couldn't put it down!
The author's excellent descriptive language transported me around the globe in this epic novel - I loved it and was gripped throughout.
The author handled the big themes deftly and left me satisfied with a realistic ending rather than a cliché.
This book would make an incredible movie.
The author's excellent descriptive language transported me around the globe in this epic novel - I loved it and was gripped throughout.
The author handled the big themes deftly and left me satisfied with a realistic ending rather than a cliché.
This book would make an incredible movie.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By A. Dauncey
Format:Hardcover
Having read the author's two previous books, I was quick off the mark to snap this title up. And, it didn't disappoint. As a matter of fact I was fully ensconced in this book from the first sentence.
The detail given in the book transports you back to Victorian England and the sweltering heat of India during the days of Empire. You can almost feel yourself there watching the events as Frank and Grace's lives unfold.
If there is nothing else you do this summer, then venture into the sun, this book in hand and drink in the other, settle into the garden chair and allow yourself to be taken back in time.
(On another note, I understand the author will be signing copies of this book in Waterstone's in Sutton on April 14th)
The detail given in the book transports you back to Victorian England and the sweltering heat of India during the days of Empire. You can almost feel yourself there watching the events as Frank and Grace's lives unfold.
If there is nothing else you do this summer, then venture into the sun, this book in hand and drink in the other, settle into the garden chair and allow yourself to be taken back in time.
(On another note, I understand the author will be signing copies of this book in Waterstone's in Sutton on April 14th)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Manda Scott
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
I've never been a great lover of Imperial Britain: the stories of heroic men heroically destroying indigenous cultures has never seemed to me all that... heroic. Or good. Or worthwhile. It may be a history of our land, but on the whole, I'd rather not know the gory details.
But then TD Griggs produced 'Distant Thunder' and this is definitely a case of following the author - his "Redemption Blues" is one of the best contemporary thrillers I have ever read and marked him as one to follow. Against natural instinct, therefore - and I have to say against a cover that does nothing whatsoever to recommend the book - I read it.
I am so glad that I did. In brief, this is the story of two people: young Frank Gray lives an idyllic life in Bangalore (1893) when he is the unwitting witness to his mother's assault and death. A man flees the scene and based on minor memories of his uniform and a name said by his mother, Frank is set on a life bent on vengeance.
In England, Grace Dearborn is the heir to the Dearborn industrial inheritance. But she, too, is growing in a changing world and her relationship with the housekeeper, the formidable, politically active Mrs Rossiter (a wonderful foil to Grace's vapid mother), changes forever her view of the world into which she has been born.
I'm not giving too much of a spoiler to tell you that their paths cross and it is in their different priorities that much of the emotional action is grounded.
As with REDEMPTION BLUES, the language, and literacy of this is glorious, and the depth and texture of characterisation is beautiful.... Read more ›
But then TD Griggs produced 'Distant Thunder' and this is definitely a case of following the author - his "Redemption Blues" is one of the best contemporary thrillers I have ever read and marked him as one to follow. Against natural instinct, therefore - and I have to say against a cover that does nothing whatsoever to recommend the book - I read it.
I am so glad that I did. In brief, this is the story of two people: young Frank Gray lives an idyllic life in Bangalore (1893) when he is the unwitting witness to his mother's assault and death. A man flees the scene and based on minor memories of his uniform and a name said by his mother, Frank is set on a life bent on vengeance.
In England, Grace Dearborn is the heir to the Dearborn industrial inheritance. But she, too, is growing in a changing world and her relationship with the housekeeper, the formidable, politically active Mrs Rossiter (a wonderful foil to Grace's vapid mother), changes forever her view of the world into which she has been born.
I'm not giving too much of a spoiler to tell you that their paths cross and it is in their different priorities that much of the emotional action is grounded.
As with REDEMPTION BLUES, the language, and literacy of this is glorious, and the depth and texture of characterisation is beautiful.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
An epic masterpiece of love and intrigue
In an era of cheap thrills Tim Griggs's books stand head and shoulders above the masses. That he has a million copy bestseller under his belt (Redemption Blues: if you haven't, you... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ricardohos
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent story telling
Wasn't sure what to expect - surprised with the depth of the characters across the relatively few years of their relationship. Read more
Published 2 months ago by HA Churchley
5.0 out of 5 stars
Distant Thunder - a fantastic read
This epic saga, set at the end of the nineteenth century is meticulously researched and vividly brings alive life in India and England at that time,culminating with the glamour and... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mrs. H. Rosser
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good traditional adventure
I found all the ingredients of traditional historical adventure, and enjoyed their blending by this master storyteller. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Cathy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Comment on Distant Thunder
Just finished DISTANT THUNDER by Tim Griggs. I thought it was a smashing book. A real page-turner. Interesting detail on the Empire, battles and army stuff, a good story and some... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Ali Haill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant
I finished it yesterday and was quite breathless at the end. I was thinking Dr Zhivago! Gone With The Wind! Read more
Published 14 months ago by Mags
5.0 out of 5 stars
Is there a sequel?
I picked this up not really knowing what to expect. I am not really a fan of military history nor books about Empire however having just finished this big book in but a few short... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Blue Moon
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