Showing results by author "Wilbur Smith" in All Categories

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.

Sean Courtney, ex-guerilla fighter in the Bush War, is now a man of peace, leading hunting safaris in Zimbabwe for wealthy men. His current client is Riccardo Monterro, a strong-headed man whose beautiful, strong-minded daughter Claudia has reluctantly accompanied him on the search for the greatest of all trophies: the old bull elephant Tukutela. But the elephant, and Riccardo's obsession, will lead them over the border into a Mozambique still devastated by civil war.

Craig Mellow, acclaimed author but unhappy exile, seizes the chance to return to Zimbabwe when he is given a spying mission for the World Bank. Accompanied by beautiful photographer Sally-Anne Jay, he is at first unaware of the dangerous currents of tribal conflict that swirl below the calm surface of Zimbabwean politics. Then he stumbles upon a highly organised ivory-poaching operation which masks the treacherous plot to sell the country he once fought for into slavery....

The war is over; Hitler is dead - and yet his evil legacy lives on. Saffron Courtney and her beloved husband, Gerhard, only just survived the brutal conflict, but Gerhard's Nazi-supporting brother, Konrad, is still free and determined to regain power. As a dangerous game of cat and mouse develops, a plot against the couple begins to stir. One that will have ramifications throughout Europe....

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.<

The son of a wealthy plantation owner and a doting mother, Mungo St John is accustomed to the wealth and luxuries his privilege has afforded him. That is until he returns from university to discover his family ruined, his inheritance stolen and his childhood sweetheart, Camilla, taken by the conniving Chester Marion. Fuelled by anger and love, Mungo swears vengeance and devotes his life to saving Camilla - and destroying Chester.

In this third high-octane instalment, Jack and his friends are skiing in the Alps when Jack is engulfed by an avalanche.

The Malabar coast is full of dangers: greedy tradesmen, fearless pirates, and men full of vengeance. But for a Courtney, the greatest danger might just be his own family.... Francis Courtney flees the comfort of his Devonshire estate when his stepfather's gambling debts leave him penniless and at risk. He sails to South Africa with revenge and fortune on his mind: his uncle Tom Courtney killed his father, and Francis intends to avenge his death and make his fortune in the process.

The Angels Weep is the third best-selling book in Wilbur Smith's Ballantyne Novels - an epic exploration into the dark past of colonial Africa. At the dawn of a new century, the pioneers of Rhodesia have staked their claims and stocked their farms in the land they have carved as their own. But in the hills, the Matabele indunas are preparing for the bloody rebellion which will scar the opponents for ever - and etch for them the same tragic legacy for generations to come....

1754. Inseparable since birth and growing up in India, Theo and Connie Courtney are torn apart by the tragic death of their parents. Theo, wracked with guilt, seeks salvation in combat and conflict, joining the British in the war against the French and Indian army. Connie, believing herself abandoned by her brother, and abused and brutalised by a series of corrupt guardians, makes her way to France, where she is welcomed into high society.

Worldwide best-selling author Wilbur Smith will take you on an incredible journey on the thrashing seas off the coast of Africa in this glorious return to the series that made him who he is: The Courtney series.

Jack Courtney has lived in the UK his whole life. But this summer his parents are travelling to the Democratic Republic of the Congo for a gorilla conference and they've promised to take Jack and his friends with them. When his parents go missing in the rainforest, abducted by mercenaries, nobody seems to have any answers. Jack is pretty sure that it's got something to do with the nearby tantalum mines, but he needs to prove it. Along with Amelia and Xander, Jack must brave the jungle to save his parents. Standing in his way is a member of his own family - Caleb Courtney.

In the remote South African bush, the Ballantynes have captured the villainous Josef Gerhard and made him their prisoner. After his monstrous predasaurs unleashed a deadly virus on the world, and he framed the Ballantynes for it, he deserves to pay. But Robyn and Ralph are also racing to get the newly created vaccine for the disease out before it's too late, and stop Gerhard's partner in crime, President Mbato, from snatching power once again. It's time to leave the wilderness and head to the city for the final showdown.

Across the lush plains of Egypt, Taita, a freed eunuch slave, wears his authority lightly. Not only is he the close advisor to the Pharaoh, but he is guardian to Pharaoh Tamose's two teenage sisters, the young beauties Tehuti and Bekatha. But the kingdom is not at peace. They have been fighting Southern Egypt's constant and historic enemy, the Hyksos people in the north, since time began. To finally crush them, Pharaoh must turn to his most trusted friend.

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.

In the city of Lahun, Hui lives an enchanted life. The favoured son of a doting father, and ruler-in-waiting of the great city, his fate is set. But behind the beautiful façades a sinister evil is plotting. Craving power and embittered by jealousy, Hui's stepmother, the great sorceress Isetnofret, and Hui's own brother Qen, orchestrate the downfall of Hui's father, condemning Hui and seizing power in the city.

In the wild Lebombo Mountains of South Africa, Ralph and Robyn are on the run from the nefarious Josef Gerhard. His beastly man-made predasaurs have unleashed a deadly virus and only the Ballantynes have the evidence to prove it. They need to regroup and plan their next move if they want to stop him before it's too late and find a cure for the virus.

But deep in the forest, dangers lurk; poachers are circling, and Gerhard has a brand-new creation he wants to show off, if he can lure the Ballantynes to its lair.

En del af "Egypten-serien". I den gamle egyptiske by Theben samles faraos trofaste undersåtter for at hylde ham under Osiris-festivalen. Den kloge og synske eunuk, Taita, ser ham dog kun som et symbol på rigets forfald. Taita er slave for Lord Intefs datter Lostris. Lostris er forelsket i den unge officer Tanus, men deres drøm om en fælles fremtid bliver knust, da Lord Intef nægter at lade dem få hinanden. I stedet gifter han Lostris bort til kongen, den gamle, impotente farao, og Tanus bliver udvist til ørkenen.

Året er 1913, og den tidligere soldat, nu storvildtsjæger, Leon Courtney, er i Britisk Afrika, hvor han fungerer som guide for rige og magtfulde mænd fra Amerika og Europa, som vil på safari i masaiernes territorium. En af hans klienter, den tyske industrimagnat, Grev Otto Von Meerbach, har et blomstrende firma, som bygger flyvemaskiner og køretøjer for den tyske kejsers hær. Leon møder også von Meerbachs smukke uimodståelige elskerinde, Eva, som han bliver dybt og inderligt forelsket i.

Da Hazel Bannock, ejer af det globale oliefirma Bannock Oil, er på cruise i det indiske ocean, bliver hendes yacht kapret af somaliske pirater og hendes 19-årige datter, Cayla, kidnappet. Hector Cross er tidligere major i det britiske specialkorps SAS og ejer nu et sikkerhedsfirma, som arbejder for Bannock Oil, og hans loyalitet mod familien Bannock kender ingen grænser. Piraterne kræver en astronomisk høj løsesum for at frigive Cayla, men politiske og diplomatiske hensyn komplicerer sagen, og Hazel tilkalder straks Hector.