Wilbur Smith, author of Those in Peril, answers Ten Terrifying Questions". Booktopia. 22 March 2011 . Retrieved 22 March 2013. As he looked around the assembled crowd, his gaze paused on Constance. He saw only another veiled servant – and he had so many servants, he could not be expected to recognise all of them. It would never have occurred to him that an Englishwoman would disgrace herself by donning native dress. He turned his attention elsewhere. But on the other side of the Atlantic, unbeknownst to Rob, his distant cousins Cal and Aidan Courtney are leading a campaign against the British in a quest for American Independence. When Aidan is killed in a fierce battle with British troops, Cal vows he will not rest until he has avenged his brother's death, by driving the British out of America - by whatever means necessary . . . A powerful new historical thriller by the master of adventure fiction, Wilbur Smith, of families divided and a country on the brink of revolution. You know nothing,’ he said to George. ‘The only thing that would break my heart is seeing my grandson kept here against his will. He must go out, explore the world and make his own fortune. As you did, once.’

He would never know. The handle was released, the shadow moved on. George walked away up the corridor. Tap. Tap. Tap. Rob heard the creak of his father’s bedroom door, then silence.He knew there had once been a battle in this bay. His grandfather, Jim, and his great-grandfather Tom had fought in it almost forty years ago. Rob had heard the stories so often he could recite them by heart. How the Caliph of Oman had brought his fleet to punish the Courtneys, and how Tom had lured those ships into the bay only to burn them to the waterline with heated shot. For years the skeletons of the sunken fleet had lurked in the bay like ancient monsters. But storms and tides had done their work, and the timbers had slipped out to sea or been washed ashore to be burned as firewood. The battle was disappearing from memory. When his grandparents died, it would be no more than a legend. It really was love at first sight—and now she's got the best English teacher in the world. Of course people ask about the age gap, but I just say, 'What's 39 years?' Sure, she's young enough to be my daughter, so what?" [40] George was as adventurous as you ever were,’ she said. ‘When he quit the sea, he did it for Rob and Susan. He did not want to risk making them orphans.’ Altogether, Wilbur Smith and his co-authors completed ten adult titles prior to his passing in November 2021. Wilbur was particularly keen to unite the two strands of the Courtney family tree, bringing the Courtneys of Europe and the Courtneys of Africa together to complete his exploration of the touchpoints of world history from the 1500s to the present day, as seen through the eyes of one family dynasty.

Rob had no time to escape. The shark was the hunter, and the ocean was its element. His spear had drifted out of reach. She tugged on his belt. Theo resisted, but Constance was stubborn. She grabbed his ankle and pulled it from under him. The first story I ever sold was to 'Argosy' magazine, which... at QuoteTab". QuoteTab . Retrieved 17 September 2020. I have seen how you look at me.’ George tapped his wooden leg. ‘Your father the cripple, the stay-at-home. Could not hold a candle to the great Jim Courtney.’I know you cannot stay here. I have seen the way you look at the sea, and the ships that call. You gaze at that blue horizon and long to discover what is beyond it.’ Shout at the Devil (1968), filmed as Shout at the Devil (1976) starring Roger Moore, Lee Marvin and Barbara Parkins There was no point trying to fight it. Her life had had its share of sorrows, but it had also given her many joys. She was content. a b "Passion and piracy with Wilbur Smith". HeraldScotland. 14 July 2012 . Retrieved 25 November 2017.

His novels are divided into different groups, which he called series: the Courteney series, the Ballantyne series and the Egyptians series. While his career was evolving, he also got married (throughout his life he will marry 4 women), and his third wife, Danielle Antoinette Thomas with whom he married in 1971, became one of his greatest sources of inspiration. The woman, however, died on the 29th of December 1999 after a long illness. As he lost her he also lost an important muse. But when she put her head around Constance’s door, everything was as it should be. Her daughter lay in her bed, her golden hair spread across the pillow, breathing softly in her deep, untroubled sleep. Theo slumped in his favourite chair and sipped his tea. Even the drink was tainted with the sour taste of politics. Cal had refused to drink tea, ever since the British government put a tax on it. There will be no war,’ said Theo, in a voice that brooked no argument. He crumpled the two scraps of paper into a ball and threw it into the fire. He glared at Cal, defying him to protest. ‘And if I hear any more of this treason, you will find you are not yet old enough that I cannot give you a thrashing.’

Publication Order of Courtney Books

Wild Justice (1979), filmed as Wild Justice but was released to video under the title Covert Assassin (1993) starring Roy Scheider A large Sikh in a bright red turban entered the room. His name was Harjinder, Mansur’s guard and stoutest servant. He had served the family since before Constance was born. No,’ said Rob. ‘If any good can come from Grandfather’s death, it has given me a second chance to leave with Captain Cornish. You said you needed me to look after your father. Now that burden is lifted.’

When it comes to writing the adventure novel, Wilbur Smith is the master; a 21st century H. Rider Haggard’ You must go,’ said Constance. Her eyes were wide, alive with excitement. ‘If they catch us, we will be in such trouble.’ A Sikh watchman was making his rounds with a lantern. Theo flattened himself against the roof and waited until the danger had passed. He edged to the nearest window and peered inside. It is treason,’ Theo spluttered. ‘It says that our colony should break with Britain and declare for independence.’Rob wondered at the shifting currents and tides that had revealed the cannonball now. It was a long time since any gun had been fired in anger in Nativity Bay.