The Triumph of the Sun cover art

The Triumph of the Sun

Courtney & Ballantyne, Book 12

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The Triumph of the Sun

By: Wilbur Smith
Narrated by: Elliot Chapman
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About this listen

Menace emanated from them as fiercely as the heat from the sun. Night and day, the drums never stopped, a constant reminder of the mortal threat that hung over them. She could hear them booming across the waters, like the heartbeat of the monster.

An unimaginable enemy will bring them together....

In the burning heat of the Sudanese sun, the city of Khartoum is under siege from the fearsome forces of the Mahdi, the charismatic leader of those who tire of the brutal Egyptian government. In Khartoum, along with thousands of innocent citizens, are trapped the fanatical General Charles Gordon, intrepid soldier Penrod Ballantyne of the 10th Hussars, English trader Ryder Courtney and the British consul and his three beautiful daughters.

As rescue becomes increasingly unlikely, this group of Queen Victoria's loyal citizens must unite to prepare themselves against a nightmarish enemy, and for the savage battle to survive that must surely follow....

The Courtneys meet the Ballantynes in a sweeping adventure.

©2005 Wilbur Smith (P)2018 Audible, Ltd Action & Adventure Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Fiction Middle East Royalty Heartfelt Africa

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All stars
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The start of the book was a bit slow and monotonous, but the story is still worth a listen. It picks up and draws you in, but some parts falls flat, but then gets picked up again. Would recommend

Worth a listen

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Fast paced , atmospheric and a page turning adventure story . A quickly engaging and good listen.

Ripping Yarn

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I love a long story but my criticism of Wilbur Smith is that ,the stories are so long, that it is like reading two books, back to back. The history is very interesting I admit, in this case, the death of General Gordon at Khartoum at the hands of Islamic extremists and the routing of the Madhist forces at the battle of Omdurman seems to arrive earlier than it did in history. In fact it was 20 years later 1898. Again with Wilbur Smith the story is over long: I lost track of who was who and what was what! He is a good storyteller without doubt and brings to life the characters involved: His portrait of the enigmatic Gordon is spot on, a muscular Christian as he was described at the time virulently opposed to slavery in the Sudan. The Mahdi is the usual dillusional religious leader hell bent on wiping out "infidels" with his rag tag army of dervishes. After the fall of Khartoum the story becomes confusing and meandering between the fate of the survivors and the approaching nemesis at Omdurman. But Wilbur Smith is a cracking storyteller so if you want a long read then he is your man.

Overly long

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..but a weaker one by the exceptionally high standards set by this author. The narration was good although somewhat marred by several recurring mispronounciations.

A good book by general standards

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After reading all I could about Gordon and the subsequent reconquest, I cannot fault Smiths compelling novel, my only criticism if any, we don’t need all the sex crap, some yes maybe… still a great story!

Faultlessly Enjoyable

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