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On Leopard Rock
- A Life of Adventures
- Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Biographies & Memoirs, Adventurers, Explorers & Survival
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This is not Smith, like a teenagers story.
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loved it
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Excellent
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This is not Smith, like a teenagers story.
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fantastic book well worth the money
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loved it
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Pure Gold from Wilbur once more
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From best-selling novelist Wilbur Smith, The Eye of the Tiger is an exciting adventure set amongst the peaceful islands of the Indian Ocean, where a man's past returns to hunt him down. Harry Fletcher, a man with a chequered past, has reformed and is making an honest living as a charter skipper fishing for big game in the seductive waters of the Indian Ocean. Suddenly men from the world of violence Harry has put behind him overturn his good intentions, involving him in a hectic race to recover a fabulous treasure from an ancient wreck.
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Excellent
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The Diamond Hunters
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Fortunes rise and fall in Wilbur Smith's tale of warring siblings and illegal diamond trading, The Diamond Hunters. The Van Der Byl Diamond Company, willed by its founder to his son Benedict, his sister Tracey and their estranged foster brother Johnny Lance, turns out to be a bequest of hatred. For it is couched in such terms as to offer Benedict the instrument of destruction of his bitterest rival. 'Destroy Johnny' is the old man's implacable message. And so, consumed with envy for Johnny, Benedict sets out in ruthless pursuit of this goal.
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Great as far as it went.
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Robbed of his wife and ousted from his huge shipping empire, Nick Berg is hell-bent on vengeance. It is the sea which gives him his opportunity. When his arch-rival's luxury liner is trapped in the tempestuous Antarctic, Nick stakes all to pit his powerful salvage tug, the Warlock, in a desperate race against time and the elements....
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Hungry as the sea
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The hijacking of a jumbo jet off the Seychelles galvanises antiterrorist chief Peter Stride into the action for which he has spent a lifetime training. But even in the hail of bullets which follows, he knows that this is only the beginning of a nightmare. Stride is the one man who might find the twisted genius who holds the world hostage - if only his every move were not anticipated by the enemy....
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Wild Justice
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Predator
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The Hunt Begins…Two men are responsible for the death of Hector Cross’ wife and only one is left alive: Johnny Congo – psychopath, extortionist, murderer, and the bane of Cross’s life. He caught him before and let him go. Now, Hector wants him dead. So does the US government.<
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Usual Smith
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When the Lion Feeds
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It is the 1870s, and twin brothers Sean and Garrick Courtney are born into the wilds of Natal. They could not be more different, and fate, war and the jealous schemes of a woman are to drive them even further apart. But as history unfolds, a continent is awakening. And on the horizon is the promise of fortune, adventure, destiny and love.... When the Lion Feeds is the best-selling novel that launched Wilbur Smith's stellar career and the first in the riveting saga of the Courtney brothers.
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Just as good as I remembered!
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River God
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Taita is a humble slave, an expert in art, poetry, medicine and engineering as well as keeping important secrets. He is the most treasured possession of Lord Intef. Yet when Intef's beautiful daughter, Lostris, is married to the Pharaoh, Taita is commanded to follow her and swiftly finds himself deeper than he ever could have imagined in a world of deception and treachery. But outside the palace, the great kingdom of Egypt is divided and in even greater danger. Enemies threaten on all sides, and only Taita holds the power to save them all....
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Brilliant
- By John Peter Jarvis on 08-04-19
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Pharaoh
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- Unabridged
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Egypt is under attack. Pharaoh Tamose lies mortally wounded. The ancient city of Luxor is surrounded. All seems lost. Taita prepares for the enemy's final fatal push. The ex-slave, now general of Tamose's armies, is never more ingenious than when all hope is dashed. And this is Egypt's most desperate hour. With the timely arrival of an old ally, the tide is turned, and the Egyptian army feasts upon its retreating foe. But upon his victorious return to Luxor, Taita is seized and branded a traitor. Tamose is dead, and a poisonous new era has begun. The new Pharaoh has risen.
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A pale comparison to earlier work
- By Phil S-T on 03-10-16
Summary
Wilbur Smith has lived an incredible life of adventure, and now he shares the extraordinary true stories that have inspired his fiction.
From being attacked by lions to close encounters with deadly reef sharks, from getting lost in the African bush without water to crawling the precarious tunnels of gold mines, from marlin fishing with Lee Marvin to near death from crash-landing a Cessna airplane, from brutal school days to redemption through writing and falling in love, Wilbur Smith tells us the intimate stories of his life that have been the raw material for his fiction. Always candid, sometimes hilarious, and never less than thrillingly entertaining, On Leopard Rock is testament to a writer whose life is as rich and eventful as his novels are enthralling.
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What listeners say about On Leopard Rock
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Cal777
- 18-07-18
Fantastic.........
5 out 5 Really enjoyed listening to how all the carictors came about,form this wonderful story teller.
5 people found this helpful
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- Ruthie7
- 28-09-18
"What a Life"
VERY GOOD.... as only Wilbur does. It brought back so many memories as I too grew up in Zimbabwe.
3 people found this helpful
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- Peter
- 20-09-18
Very interesting
A nice book about Wilbur Smith and where he came from and how he got the inspiration for his stories. Well written and well read.
3 people found this helpful
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- Nigel Bentley
- 25-09-18
Learning the Story Behind all those Books
Totally enjoyed this autobiography, and especially Saul's reading performance of it. Immersion in the sights, sounds and experiences of Southern Africa. From boyhood, to manhood and along the way explpring the writer's journey
2 people found this helpful
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- geoff
- 28-06-18
wonderful storyteller
A really good insight to a wonderful life of writing and story telling. Great life
2 people found this helpful
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- Marnie
- 26-03-20
excellent 👍
One of the best books I have read and I'm looking forward to reading more if his books
1 person found this helpful
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- Gary
- 21-02-20
At last...
At last notated by someone that can pronounce all the words especially the African ones...
1 person found this helpful
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- stevehsnr
- 31-05-18
Autibiography
I didn’t realise when I bought this audiobook that it was Smiths autobiography and I was a little disappointed when I realised it was. However,I persevered with it and was so glad I did. What an interesting life and,of course, Wilbur Smith’s beautiful prose.
1 person found this helpful
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- rozithepirate
- 22-05-18
Actually I give it 6 stars!
An amazing read. Long awaited life story of the wonderful Wilbur Smith. I can honestly say it was as good as it gets. What a wonderful life story. Please can we have another installment.
1 person found this helpful
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- The Elite Book Group
- 20-03-22
A truly extraordinary memoir.
Wilbur Smith's life was filled with as much adventure as any of his books. A true "son of Africa".
Saul Reichlin is one of the best South African narrators who breathes the heart of Africa into the words that he speaks.
A book that can definitely be visited more than once, because of its entertaining qualities.
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- Michele Haines
- 12-12-19
This Gives You a Look Into Wilbur Smiths Life
If you haven’t read Wilbur Smith YOU NEED TO! I am so sad because I have now finished all of his series along with all but one of his novels. I’m saving that for an up coming road trip with my husband.
Mr. Smiths writing style is so very extraordinary, vivid, alive, I feel like I am a character in one of his stories his novels are so easy to melt into. I feel as though I can, smell the air, taste the salt of the sea, feel the stinging heat of the desert, touch the minerals and rocks, hike through the jungles, go on Safari, feel the splashing rain, smell the mineral iron smell of blood, ride a horse....I JUST DO NOT KNOW HOW TO EXPRESS HOW FABULOUS THESE NOVELS & SERIES ARE!
***THANK YOU Wilber Smith for sharing your stories with the world, I for one am richer for it.
5 people found this helpful
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- Sean
- 16-07-19
Wilbur Smith is Raconteur Royalty
Having read my first Wilbur Smith novel when I was a mere 17 years of age, I quickly realized that within those pages, I would forever find the adventures, action, tragedies, triumphs, beauty, brutality and life lessons that every literary voyeur wishes to dive into deeply and often!
Birds of Prey was to be that diving board that would send me splashing into a deep pool of Smith’s world of many magnificent tales.
Being South African myself, I instantly understood his deep love of and respect for the African continent with all of its splendor and squalor. All of which he captures so seemingly without effort, however, always with expertly crafted plots and twists, meticulously researched historical factuality and just a hint of boyish roguishness.
I will always find his books irresistible and have reread some of these tomes several times over without it losing any of the sparkle that so endeared me to them all those years ago.
On Leopard Rock is an honest, sober, insightful and utterly entertaining glance into the author’s extraordinary life. His passion for exploration and adoration of nature, his insatiable wanderlust, the love and respect for his family and friends is captured sincerely within these pages.
Most of the questions I have often wondered about have been instantaneously answered whilst gaining insights about aspects of his stories I have not even thought about yet!
A joyous experience from one of the world’s most gifted storytellers.
2 people found this helpful
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- Damian
- 07-01-22
What a gem!
Not only as an autobiography of a life well lived, but as an example of what can be done when one is determined to see dreams come true. In addition, by sharing his story, Mr. Smith has provided an incredible encouragement to all readers who aspire to publish their own book (and amongst all bibliophiles, who doesn’t?) If you have ever enjoyed a Wilbur Smith novel, this is an excellent and enervating blueprint of the author! Thank you, Mr. Smith!
1 person found this helpful
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- Stephanie Levy
- 24-12-21
Stephanie Levy - Highland Park Illinois USA
It’s rare that you finish a book and want to begin it again to savor every word a second time. I wish Wilbur Smith was alive so I could tell him how much this book meant to me. Most especially since President FD de Klerk has just passed away a couple months ago. WS description of the magnificence of Nelson Mandela was truly well done. The world is poorer for Madiba’s passing, but richer for his undeniable brilliant example of “once in a lifetime” African statesmanship. This book is a masterpiece.
1 person found this helpful
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- James Rice
- 10-01-22
Disappointing
After several hours of listening, it became too much to constantly hear Wilbur Smith profusely complementing himself on his literary accomplishments. There are moments where the story is compelling and interesting, only to be broken by the author’s insistence on reminding the listener of his greatness. In the end, I could not finish this book.
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-10-21
Wilbur Smith the legend
Only after finishing this excellent auto biography do you truely understand this incredible writer
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- Thomas Frederick Mills
- 10-09-21
A great author who tells tremendous Stories
I'm an author myself ,WILBUR SMITH Helped me two See how he became a World class writer and made me want to keep trying to get my book.. BUSTED WHEELIN 'N DEALIN' Read or heard around the world
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- JDD
- 28-05-19
The fantastic life of my favoritevauthor
Without a doubt, Wilbur Smithers is my favorite writer, and this autobiography is a pleasure to read and hear. As in all of his books, it contains vivid descriptions of life events important to Smirg as well as places and doings import to me.
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- Jimmy Pollard
- 03-05-19
a wonderful book thank you Wilbur
a book to help us understand our favorite author's life and struggles to achieve his goals
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- Jerry Miller
- 15-11-18
You better be a real Wilbur Smith fan!
Had I not been a real Wilbur Smith fan, I would have not made it 1/4 through this. But, ere I am and found it most informative. I especially commend his late part description of what it takes to be and the sufferings of a writer. For those who have never read a Wilbur Smith novel, my condolences. If you are still breathing, it is not too late. But, give yourself time to read all of them. If you have to pick and choose, start with the Courtney volumes. You will not be disappointed.