The Triumph of the Sun

May 16, 2005
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. Naïve 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.

John Lee is the perfect voice for this saga of nineteenth-century Sudan. From the siege of Khartoum in 1884 to the British recapture of the Sudan nearly 20 years later, Wilbur Smith fills this desolate landscape with fascinating characters, both British and Arab. Lee's reading brings life to the people and times with words as flowing as the Mahdis' colorful robes. This unabridged version of Smith's sweeping novel provides readers with a deep understanding of the issues and conflicts that drove Arabs and Brits into bloody ongoing conflict. Perhaps even more important, this wonderful collaboration of Lee's voice and Smith's powerful words also provides some insight into twenty-first-century strife. T.J.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine