BOOK BLURB
The second novel in Wilbur Smith’s The Courtneys series, The Sound of Thunder is a powerful story of family tragedy set against the backdrop of the ravages of the Second Boer War.
‘Only once in his life had Sean met a man whose strength matched his own – and now, again, they were pitted against each other . . .’
Sean Courtney, impulsive adventurer of When the Lion Feeds returns from the wildnerness a rich man – until he is robbed by the Boers of his wagons, his gold and the girl he loves. A grim homecoming finds his country in the cruel grip of war. But in the bloody days ahead, conflicts within his family will prove far more bitter than any fought on the veld
BOOK REVIEW
No matter how desperate Sean gets the Veld calls to him. Heartbroken and seemingly lost he leaves his son Dirk with his mother and leaves home to find some kind of peace. Only peace is not in his blood and he soon finds himself fighting with the English in the Boer War. Making a lifelong friend they fight side by side arm in arm. Yet there is someone in the command chain that wants Sean dead and when their identity is revealed it strikes yet another blow to Sean’s heart. A chance encounter with a charming young woman will melt Sean’s heart but break it again and again. On his return home he finds his son to be a wild young man hell bent on gaining his father’s respect. Yet there are more children for Sean, only these he cannot claim as his own. Family feuds come to a head when his brother pits against him driven on by the hate his wife fills him with. With fatal and horrible consequences the two brothers will fight, hate and struggle until a truth emerges that will leave both reeling and attempting a reconciliation.
The book is all you would expect from the author. Thrilling, chilling, exhilarating, nail biting, exciting and heartbreaking. The book seems to again concentrate on Sean, the wandering adventurer who goes from one escapade to another. He rebuilds his life, he abandons his son in order to find more adventures, he falls in love and fights for his life. The descriptions in the book make you feel as though you are there amid the guns, the adventures and the heartbreak. Accurately depicting the lives and conditions of the era it’s set in the book is a fantastic fictionalised story of epic proportions. An adventure book that will appeal to readers off all ages and genres. A compulsive read that will transport you to another era brought to life through the medium of words.
My thanks to Tracy Fenton and the team at Bonnier books for the opportunity to read and review the books by Wilbur Smith.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Wilbur Smith was born in Central Africa in 1933. He was educated at Michaelhouse and Rhodes University. After the successful publication of WHEN THE LION FEEDS in 1964 he became a full-time writer, and has since written 30 novels, all meticulously researched on his numerous expeditions worldwide. His books have been translated into twenty-six different languages
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