The Triumph of the Sun: A Novel of African Adventure
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Review
Praise for "Blue Horizon:
"The action starts quickly and builds throughout, leading to an exciting--and bloody--confrontation. Tim Pigott-Smith reads the tale as a tough adventure yarn but doesn't shy away from the romance between Jim and Louisa. Listeners who like adventure, historical or otherwise, will enjoy this chase on land and sea." --"AudioFile
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"The action starts quickly and builds throughout, leading to an exciting--and bloody--confrontation. Tim Pigott-Smith reads the tale as a tough adventure yarn but doesn't shy away from the romance between Jim and Louisa. Listeners who like adventure, historical or otherwise, will enjoy this chase on land and sea." --"AudioFile
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
1884 and in Khartoum, on the banks of the Nile, the Courtneys meet the Ballantynes in this epic adventure from one of the world's most celebrated novelists
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
100 of 102 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I love Wilbur Smith, and I have been waiting for this new book for so long, so it almost seems a shame that I got it and immediately read it....what do I do now - wait until the next book comes out in two years time? In this new book, the great fictional families from Smith's previous novels encounter each other for the first time - the Courtneys and the Ballantynes. It's almost as though these two families have been in a parallel existence for so long, and for readers of Smith (like me), the encounter of both families has been long awaited. It's difficult to write a review about this book without giving anything away, but I'll give you a thumbnail sketch: British businessman Ryder Courtney is trapped in the siege of Khartoum in 1884, along with a captain of the 10th Hussars (Penrod Ballantyne), the British consul and his three daughters. Against the fierce, graphic setting of the battle, there is this great story of survival, strength and determination.
There are also some great strong characters which seem to be making contemporary references about the world today; Mahdi, the mystic warlord seems to be a comment about the rise of Islam and the problems in the world today.
This is a great book, and although the characters are from the families of previous books, this is not a sequel to any of the books which came before, nor a continuation of any prior story. It seems as though Smith has brought a natural meeting point for the families and taken them upon a new journey, and not just taken the easy route by writing a sequel to Blue Horizon (though I would really like to see that myself).
If you're new to Smith, you might be better off reading a few of the previous books first before taking this one on, just so that you get a feel of what the families are about, but even if you don't, you will not regret buying this book. Thank you Wilbur Smith.
110 of 113 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is an excellant book about the siege of Khartoum and features a Courtney (Ryder, the uncle of Sean and Garrick) and a Ballantyne (Penrod). This does not follow directly from 'Blue Horizon' the last Courtney novel but is in fact a stand alone novel that takes place at the same time as 'When the Lion Feeds' and 'The Sound of Thunder'. Although Ryder and Penrod are joint 'leads' of the story Penrod gets the stronger personal story. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and was dreading reaching the end. There is one shocking part that hit me like a physical shot when I read it, I was expecting something bad to happen but not that bad. All I can do now is wait 1 or 2 years for the next Wilbur Smith novel and see where he takes us I'm hoping for a follow on from either 'Blue Horizon' or 'The Golden Fox'.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A page turner, May 9 2005
Reviewer: Sancho Mahle (Charlotte, USA) - See all my reviews
I consider Wilbur Smith as Africa's all time best writer or novelist. The Triumph of the Sun just goes to add to the accolades from his other bestselling novels. This great historical fiction is set in The Sudans when it was gripped by the rebellion against the ruling Egyptian Khedive and the British by The Madhi or "Expected One" who in 1881 deemed himself a religious prophet who Allah had chosen to purify the Islamic faith, a rebellion which saw the creation of a vast Islamic state from the Red Sea to Central Africa by preaching the omnipotence of the Qur'an, utilizing internal class struggles, and by successfully organizing his "ansar" or military.
Against the backdrop of the Mahdi's war that led to the capture of the Khartoum, the death of General Charles George Gordon and the temporary loss of British influence, are the figures from the Courtney and the Ballantyne families that featured in Wilbur Smith's other books, amazing characters that gave the historical fiction that spice that made this story so great.
To have a better feel of the story, I suggest you also read Wilbur Smith's other books such as "When the Lion Feeds", "Blue Horizon" etc. One thing I am sure is that whether this is your first Wilbur Smith novel or just another, you are certainly going to enjoy the story. Just like DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE, the message in this novel resonates today.THE DIAMOND HUNTERS, SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL, THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES also feature among the recent books I enjoyed that are set in Africa.
Reviewer: Sancho Mahle (Charlotte, USA) - See all my reviews
I consider Wilbur Smith as Africa's all time best writer or novelist. The Triumph of the Sun just goes to add to the accolades from his other bestselling novels. This great historical fiction is set in The Sudans when it was gripped by the rebellion against the ruling Egyptian Khedive and the British by The Madhi or "Expected One" who in 1881 deemed himself a religious prophet who Allah had chosen to purify the Islamic faith, a rebellion which saw the creation of a vast Islamic state from the Red Sea to Central Africa by preaching the omnipotence of the Qur'an, utilizing internal class struggles, and by successfully organizing his "ansar" or military.
Against the backdrop of the Mahdi's war that led to the capture of the Khartoum, the death of General Charles George Gordon and the temporary loss of British influence, are the figures from the Courtney and the Ballantyne families that featured in Wilbur Smith's other books, amazing characters that gave the historical fiction that spice that made this story so great.
To have a better feel of the story, I suggest you also read Wilbur Smith's other books such as "When the Lion Feeds", "Blue Horizon" etc. One thing I am sure is that whether this is your first Wilbur Smith novel or just another, you are certainly going to enjoy the story. Just like DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE, the message in this novel resonates today.THE DIAMOND HUNTERS, SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL, THE USURPER AND OTHER STORIES also feature among the recent books I enjoyed that are set in Africa.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Triumph of the Sun
This is my favorite Wilbur Smith novel, well along with Birds of Prey and Warlock. The first two for the historical background weaved through with page-turning adventure and the... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Phil Currie
The Triumph of the Sun
'The Triumph of the Sun' sees Smith move away from his traditional sub-Saharan Africa setting towards the area of the upper Nile, and as such it is both refreshing and... Read more
Published on 27 Aug 2009 by Dominic Wood-Hill
Triumph of the Sun
A paperback book written by Wilbur Smith, not one of his best but still better than the vast majority of authors: vivid, long-winded descriptions do not mar the tale, which builds... Read more
Published on 3 Jun 2009 by N. Atkin
THE TRIUMPH OF THE SUN
As with all the novels of Wilbur Smith that I have read so far, this novel was for me the best. From the first page until the last page it was a gripping page turner that was... Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2009 by Brian Kennedy
Ho hum
I've read all of Wilbur Smiths books but this one took far longer to get into than most. Eventually the pace picks up and utimately the story is not bad, but it's a long way off... Read more
Published on 21 May 2008 by J. Tucker
Troubling
Starts off nicely as a adult adventure; girl mad gentlemen with fine moustaches seeking to seduce the Consular's daughter, battle scenes and camel trecks accross the desert by... Read more
Published on 6 July 2007 by Geoffrey Webb
Sub-Mills and Boone bodice-ripper if that's your thing
This book was reccommended to me by a friend who knows I have an interest in things to do with Sudan and the desert wars there. Read more
Published on 20 Feb 2007 by I. Cramman
Giving the people what they want.
It is by no accident that I gave this book a 5-star rating. The great enjoyment I rerived from the novel did not blind me to some rather worrying obervations about the book's... Read more
Published on 12 Feb 2007 by Atticus Stount
Audio version omit too much details
I love the book but the review is base on this product. The audio version is heavily edited down leaving a lot of details out!!! Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2006 by Just some Info
Really disappointed
I have read and re-read all of Wilbur Smith's fabulous books, but I have to say his last few offerings have been a tad tedious to read, and this last one I put down after a few... Read more
Published on 11 Sep 2006 by Jo
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