Top modern writer (Wilbur Smith in general)

Member Name: The Dutty Hooer

Product:	Wilbur Smith in general
Date:	12/12/01 (338 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent descriptions, brilliant plots, great characters

Disadvantages: Sometimes repetitive

Wilbur Smith has got to be one of the finest modern authors around. I first heard of him when I was still at school when a teacher tried to persuade me to read River God. I borrowed the book from her but never got past the first chapter… well, at fifteen I had more important things to think about, like make up and cider!!

I didn’t really think about the book again until my Mam bought me it as a present about three years later. I finally got round to reading it when I went to India, I thought four months travelling would be an ideal opportunity to get some serious reading done!! I then went on to collect quite a large number of Smith’s novels, but as of yet I’ve only read about 5 or 6.

Smith generally writes adventure stories, but they’re like no other I’ve ever read before. He has a knack of being able to completely involve the reader in the story, once you start a novel of his it’s very difficult to put it down again! There are various series of novels, one set involving the Courtneys and one involving the Ballantynes, other books of his are unrelated to any other. Personally, I haven’t read any of the stories set in the present-day as they aren’t really my “cup of tea”! I did attempt to read Elephant Song but found it hard to get into, so I soon gave up. Stories of hunting and war don’t really interest me; but having said that, his historical novels are fantastic.

1) River God
This was the first of Smith’s books that I read and the one that inspired me to read the others. The story is set in ancient Egypt and tells the tale of a eunuch named Taita who is slave to the Princess Lostris. Essentially, it is a love story but there is much more to the plot than that, Smith also writes of treason, hate, greed and war. The language used is simple yet emotive and descriptions are excellent. Reading the book really takes you back to an ancient land and you feel like
you’re there watching it all. I could almost see the Nile and the opulence of the pharaohs, small the great banquets cooking and the sewers of the city, hear the slave singing and feel the heat of the Egyptian sun.

The story tells of the love between the Princess Lostris and Tanus, the warrior. However, the Princess is betrothed to the Pharaoh Mamose and as the story unwinds you find out about the intricacies of the family, the relations with other nations, the building of a great empire, vast treasure and the religion of the ancients, not forgetting the genius of Taita, who makes sure the reader knows how clever he is! The story follows the life of Queen Lostris from teenage years to old age and from beginning to end is a fantastic read.

2) The Seventh Scroll
The Seventh Scroll is kind of a sequel to River God but is set in present-day. It tells the story of Royan, a half Egyptian half English lady who sets about uncovering the burial site of the Pharaoh Mamose and finding the treasure he was buried with. Royan with the aid of an Englishman, Nicholas Quentin Harper, uses one of Taita’s scrolls to unearth the mystery of the pharaoh.

This novel is gripping all the way. The plot is much better than that of River God, in my opinion, but that’s probably because I’m interested in archaeology anyway! The race between Royan and other interested parties to find the treasure makes it very exciting and many attempts are made on her life along the way. There’s also a bit of terrorism thrown in to add a bit of an edge, but I think that’s a bit unnecessary really.

There are clear links between this book and River God so it makes sense to read them both together. But it doesn’t really matter what order you read them in, it’s probably easier to read River God first so you know what the archaeologists are looking for in The Seventh Scroll.

3) The Sunbird
This is a novel on it’
s own, not part of a series. It’s my personal favourite out of all of Wilbur Smith’s books. The story is divided into two parts:

a. Part one is about an archaeologist named Ben and his friend Lauren, a wealthy businessman who funds Ben’s projects. Ben gets an aerial photograph depicting an ancient buried settlement, this is the start of the adventure. They travel to Africa and begin the process of excavation. This part is essentially all about the dig and the things that go on between the friends. This book does get quite political in places and is sometimes quite violent, but the story is captivating.

b. Part two is all about life in the ancient settlement that is unearthed by Ben and his team. It tells the story of Huy Ben Amon, high priest to Lannon Hycanus who is the Gry Lion (King) of Opet (Opet is the name of the settlement). There are links between part one and part two and it seems to be parallel lives – the characters of the high priest and the king could compare to the characters of Ben and Lauren (and some of the things that happen to them).

I find this book quite weird in places but also very thrilling. It never fails to send a shiver up my spine whenever I read it. The links between the two parts of the book leave you wondering whether is all actually happened or if Ben is just dreaming it all. When I read it I thought of reincarnation, like the old characters of the ancient city had died and been born again in these characters who have such a powerful interest in the city and the people who once lived there. It definitely makes you think; but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone reading this who hasn’t read the Sunbird!

4) Birds Of Prey
This novel is set in the16th century and tells the story of a young lad, Hal and his father, Sir Francis Courtney. Sir Francis is part of a naval religious order and is commissioned by the crown to stop corsairs marauding in the waters of India a
nd Africa.

This book is intended to tell the history of the Courtney family in Africa and could be considered a prequel to the Courtney series.

The main character in the novel is Hal Courtney, but his friends Aboli and Big Daniel also play a large role. There are a lot of nautical terms, which are sometimes a bit difficult to understand, but the story itself is excellent. Wilbur Smith describes life on the ship like he’d actually been there himself and has the ability to make you believe you’re really there too. The book is mostly about fighting with pirates but does involve an intertwining love story too, so it’s ideal for both woman and men to read! Hal is a really likeable character and I really got into the book, I’d recommend it to anyone!

5) Monsoon
This is the sequel to Birds Of Prey and tells the story of Hal’s sons, mainly Tom and Dorian, and about Guy and William to a lesser extent. Again the story involves fighting pirates so some of the descriptions can get a bit repetitive at times; but the plot is entirely different. The tale is of the brothers’ life on the ship with their father, when they are young boys. But they become separated from one another and after that the story splits in two. One tale tells of the brother Tom, the other about Dorian. It follows them both into manhood and again the theme of fighting and war is written alongside a love story.

The book can get a bit heavy at times and is quite long. But in my opinion that’s a good thing because I didn’t want this one to end! Wilbur Smith writes using the same style as in his other books and again the excellent descriptions make you feel like you’re really there eating the ships biscuit, sitting on the mast head and experiencing the blood and gore of the war against the pirates. Also the characters are easy to identify with so you really feel for them like you are a friend.

Wilbur Smith has wr
itten so many books that it would take ages to write about them all, so I’ve just written about a few of my favourites. He is a fantastic writer; but I don’t think I’m going to attempt to read all of his books because some of them don’t interest me at all. I’d rather stick to these ones and keep my opinion of him at the highest level than read material that I know I won’t like!

If you haven’t read any of these… then go out immediately and buy or borrow a copy of the Sunbird. I guarantee you’ll be a fan for life!!
What you waiting for??

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