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Monsoon (Macmillan pocket Tagore edition)

Wilbur Smith

Before there was empire, there was trade, and military force to protect that trade. Wilbur Smith's new, full-blooded historical novel starts with the commissioning, by King William III of Sir Hal Franklin. Franklin's mission is to rid the Indian Ocean of the pirate known as al-Aouf, the Bad One, and tells us more than we knew about the East India trade, Channel smuggling, the Arab slave trade and the struggle to keep Oman free from the Ottoman Empire.
Smith's solid, competent prose does not always avoid the hackneyed, but effectively conveys both the heat of battle and the savoury smells of lands experienced for the first time. Hal Franklin has four sons and the complex tragedy of their relationships dominates the book as brother is pitted against brother in love, and war, and treachery. The plot, though, is only a part of what is important here; the Indian Ocean trade was the site of one of the great confrontations between the English-speaking world and Islam--a conflict, between the brash mariners with their shiny new guns and the long-established, scholarly, brave, pious rulers of Arabia and the East African coast. A conflict whose outcome was open to doubt.--Roz Kaveney
A Time to Die (Courtney)

Wilbur Smith
The Seventh Scroll

Wilbur Smith
Bound to Talk: "Birds of Prey", "Monsoon", "When the Lion Feeds" v. 2: Wilbur Smith: "Birds of Prey", "Monsoon", "When the Lion Feeds" v. 2 (Courtneys of Africa)

Wilbur Smith
The Power of the Sword

Wilbur Smith
River God

Wilbur Smith
Eagle in the Sky

Wilbur Smith
The Sunbird

Wilbur Smith
Warlock

Wilbur Smith

Wilbur Smith (a name synonymous with the massive blockbuster thriller) has recaptured the verve and impact of his earlier work in Warlock. This Egyptian epic thriller follows on from the equally accomplished River God and The Seventh Scroll and re-establishes Smith at the top echelons of thriller writing. The customary continent-spanning canvas is here, with a key new element in an adroitly handled supernatural aspect that gives the sequence the feel of fantasy whilst still retaining the plausibility that was always Smith's strongest asset.
The reader is plunged into a vividly realised evocation of life in ancient Egypt but one presented with insights into the various characters that infuse a very contemporary feel. In the secluded deserts of North Africa, Taita has spent the years since the death of his adored Queen Lostris studying to become a Warlock, steeped in the arcane arts of the ancient Gods and a master practitioner of magic. Responding to an occult summons, Taita abandons the desert and returns to civilisation, only to find himself at the centre of a massive conflagration in which dark and sinister forces are undermining the throne of Egypt and attempting to destroy the young prince Nefer. Soon, his hard-won skills are tested to the limit.
As in the previous books in the sequence, Smith knows that a strong and passionate agenda on the part of his protagonists will allow the reader to identify with them, despite the gap of centuries. Here, it is family ties: Taita is defending the young prince who is the grandson of his lost Queen, and we are quickly engaged in a narrative that rarely flags over its considerable length. The action set pieces are as impressive as one would expect:
The instant he was within range the Cobra struck again, but Nefer caught the blow on the thick leather folds of the bag. The beast's fangs snagged in the leather and held fast. As Nefer swung back the snake was dragged with him. It was hauled cleanly out of the nest, a writhing, seething ball of coils and polished scales. It thrashed against Nefer's legs, the heavy tail lashing him, hissing fearsomely, clouds of venom spraying from its gaping jaws and dribbling down the leather bag. So great was its weight that Nefer's whole body was shaken violently.
--Barry Forshaw
Shout at the Devil: WITH Gold Mine AND Eye of the Tiger

Wilbur Smith
Rage

Wilbur Smith
Elephant Song

Wilbur Smith
Bound to Talk: Wilbur Smith: "A Falcon Flies", "Men of Men", "The Angels Weep", "The Leopard Hunts in Darkness" (Bound to Talk)

Wilbur Smith
Blue Horizon (Courtney)

Wilbur Smith
A Sparrow Falls

Wilbur Smith
Gold Mine (Audiobook)

Wilbur Smith
The Burning Shore (Audiobook)

Wilbur Smith
Hungry as the Sea: Complete & Unabridged

Wilbur Smith
Birds of Prey

Wilbur Smith

Look up "classic adventure novel" in the dictionary and you'll find the strong and capable features of South Africa's own Wilbur Smith, who--in books as varied and enjoyable as River God, The Seventh Scroll, When the Lion Feeds, and The Diamond Hunters--displays an awesome storytelling ability. His latest is one of his best efforts: a richly detailed story of war and piracy on the high seas in 1667, 150 years before Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey and Maturin books
The Sound of Thunder (Courtney)

Wilbur Smith