Triumph of the Sun » (First Edition)

WILBUR SMITH is the bestselling author of twenty-nine novels, all meticulously researched on his numerous expeditions worldwide. His books are now translated into twenty-six languages and have sold over eighty million copies.

In his New York Times bestselling novels Wilbur Smith has captured the drama of a vast continent. Now, in his most magnificent tale yet, he takes us back to 1884 and into the dusty city of Khartoum, where an English family and besieged populace wait for rescue—or for death...

IN A CLASH OF TWO CULTURES

They've come from out of the shifting sands and down from ancient mountains. Mounted on horse and camel, carrying gleaming swords and plundered rifles, the sons of Allah are led by a holy warrior imbued with jihad, driving his army of thousands to wipe out the last Englishmen from the isolated Nile city...

A FAMILY STOOD STRONG

But in Khartoum is a legendary British general, a brilliant, mercenary trader, a beautiful woman and a courageous soldier whose fates have become one. They know that time is running out and rescue is improbable. So they prepare for one last stand—and the beginning of an epic journey of survival...

WHILE LOVERS AND FIGHTERS RISKED EVERYTHING

From a passionate rivalry for a woman to an unforgettable face-off between warriors, TRIUMPH OF THE SUN is adventure fiction writ large—alive with the sounds of throngs, the terror of battle, and the mystical fire of human courage in the darkest moments of all.

"Swift and powerful...masterful."—Booklist

"Smith is without rival."

—Tulsa World

Publishers Weekly

Set in colonial Egypt at the end of Victoria's reign, this sweeping romantic epic reprises Smith regulars-scions of the Courteneys and Ballantynes. (The two fictional British families have provided character fodder for least half of Smith's 30 novels.) Bloodthirsty legions of Arab dervish troops under the command of the Mahdi, or ruling successor to the Prophet Muhammad, have surrounded (but not taken) Khartoum, trapping comely 17-year-old Rebecca Benbrook; her consul general father, David; and her younger twin sisters, Saffron and Amber. The appearance of a cargo boat owned by the dashing, entrepreneurial Ryder Courteney, as well as the subsequent appearance of Capt. Penrod Ballantyne of Her Majesty's 10th Hussars, give hope. Na ve Rebecca falls in love with Ballantyne, who deflowers her before racing off to warn the rescue force commander that the commander is outnumbered 25 to one. The dervish, led by the fearsome Emir Osman Atalan, overrun Khartoum, and Rebecca's father is brutally butchered; the saga continues with Penrod heroically leading troops against Osman. Steamy romance alternates with gore, and it's all done by-the-numbers in a good way-like a junky, absorbing miniseries. Fans will not be disappointed. (June) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.