Assegai

Not Up To WS Quality

If you enjoy reading about the gratuitous killing of wildlife in order to gratify the unjustly inflated ego of "white hunters," this book is for you. If you like the imperialist attitude of men who invaded countries outside their own borders for exploitation and furtherance of their idea of their own inate superiority, by all means, spend your money here.

I've read other WS novels and thoroughly enjoyed them. I understand that in the period in which this novel is set, these attitudes were routine. But at least half the book (which is where I could take no more) is devoted to enthusiastic descriptions of the killing of wildlife, much of which is now endangered, and all of which is today depleted.

The bloodthirsty men who carry out these hunts describe themselves as "white hunters." In fact, it is their native underlings who do the actual tracking but receive none of the fame, glory, or money.

I find WS's hearty descriptions unsavory and I will never again buy a book of his without very careful scrutiny.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

My New Nook

Just bought a Nook and it is so awesome. It's really suppose to be for my wife but I think we will have to share. Everyone at B&N is so helpful and we enjoy going a couple of times a week.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Not Wilbur's best work!

Having read most of the works written by Wilbur Smith I found Assegai a departure from his usual much more suspenseful works. The style exhibited made me check to see if a ghost writer (ala Clancy) was credited. Alas not so. I just didn't have the intimate contact with the characters, the terrain or the environment that I've had with his many other books. What I missed most was the feeling of actually being in Africa. The feeling of being on the chase as the spoor is taken or a pursuit. Although not a bad read, I hope to see better in the future.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Assegai by Wilbur Smith

I love Wilbur Smith's books as they are always action packed and have memorable charactors. Assegai takes a long time to get into the plot and over does the hunting scenes. The romamce is very trite and seems to be an after thought. With that said, the book is still a page turner thats keeps your interest high. Wilbur Smith has a way with making villians you hate and heros you love. The descriptions are vivid and come to life in your mind. His stories have a unique ability to transport you to another time and place, you learn a little history each time you read a Wilbur Smith novel. Overall, a good book but not Smith's best.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wilbur Smith is the best.

I came to be a fan of Wilbur Smith only a few years ago and admit that I have tried diligently to catch up on his many wonderful books. There are books that you read, books that you scan, and books that you simply skip pages to get to the end. I have yet to find a book by this author that fits into any of these categories. Once you have read one of his books, you will find that without realizing it, you have been absorbed into the world about which he writes. I truly love reading his books. They are filled with the rawness of life in any era he deems worthy to draw his notice. His characters are larger than life and you mourn the loss of even the most minor of them. Stories are deeply explored and funded with a wealth of information and research. The complexity of his characters is realistic and occasionally disturbing. I am always captivated by the depth of his understanding of history and humanty. I would highly recommend any book penned by him.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Disappointing

I love Wilbur Smith - own everything he's ever written - and buy any new title as soon as I can. This time, though, I'm afraid I was disappointed in the quality of the book. His writing is still good, he still has a great sense of Africa, but this book does not have the depth of his previous novels. I thought the characters were thin, and that his plot wasn't nearly so much as adventure as that of romance. I love an escapist week-end with Smith - this one left me feeling unsatisfied.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great book

Excellent read!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

An engrossing fun read

I am a big fan of Wilbur Smith and to me he is the best adventure writer out there. However, his books have been inconsistent. Some are great and some are boring. Happily, this book is among his best. For the first hundred pages or so I felt that the book was going to be a bit formulaic and was ready to be underwhelmed. Boy was I wrong. The book totally took off and I read the last 250 pages in one sitting. This book reads like a movie - it is that involving. One word of warning - Wilbur Smith's books are not for prudes or the squeamish. I'm neither and found it great fun.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

wilbur smith is back

if you love his other books? you will love this one. the plot is amazing and the story is eazy to follow. its back to africa and villans. i recommend this book.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Typical enthralling Wilbur Smith.

Enjoyed this very much. Recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Wilbur Smith.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Somewhat disappointed

I have read and loved every book written by Wilbur Smith. I was disappointed in "Assegi." I mean Courtney was going to spend his life on Safari, how was he going to find the love of his life? Oh, here comes a beautiful girl, being abused, needing a man to save her, and just happens to be single. It just lacked believability. I loved the action, and the characters, but it seems the story was not well thought out.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great Book

Really, really liked this story. Wilbur Smith is a master writer.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wilbur Smith strikes again.

Wilbur Smith's books are usually a perfect combination of Action, Romance, History, and Geography. His early books mostly focused on southern Africa from the countries of South Africa north to Zimbabwe. Then he wrote a series of books on northwestern Africa following the Nile from Egypt south to Ethiopia. His latest book, ASSEGAI, connects up these two regions by using Kenya and Uganda as his setting. The big question is: What comes next; he has used up all of Western Africa (the rift valley)? To summarize, Wilbur Smith's books are so good that I wish that I had written them myself.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Assegai is pure CLASSIC Wilbur Smith!

Finally! Wilbur Smith has returned to the love of his youth and the heart of his fame. Assegai is cleanly written and fluidly fast-paced, not a a dull page in the book. It brilliantly illustrates Wilbur's gifted talent as a skillful storyteller. He has masterfully woven his love and knowledge of the animals and the people of Africa, and it's history into a truly enjoyable read. In my opinion, to date, the best book Wilbur Smith has ever written. - - Barbara Davis, author of DARKSIDE OF DEBONAIR

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Epic!

How do you get to travel africa for less than $20.00 dollars? Take the trip with Mr. Smith. He will take you on a safari you will long remember.

Fast paced and geat read .

Smith works his magic again. Interesting look at a timeframe we have hear very little about.

Wilbur has still got it!

A must read for Wilbur Smith fans. He brings Afica alive.

A must for Wilbur Smith fans and for those seeking a new, exciting author

It has been years since I have read any Wilbur Smith. A friend gave me Assegai and I was thrilled to see he had something new out. One of the best books I have ever read of any kind was Smith's The Sunbird which if you haven't read it, you should if you can find a copy. To this very day, whenever I think about it, I am overcome with the same incredible feelings. Assegai ranks pretty high by Smith's standards. I found it to be frighteningly realistic by historical standards of the time period and the story line was graphic, detailed and inescapable even from the beginning. I hope that safari life in Africa has moved away from Smith's depiction of it, but it all touched my heart and kept me totally engrossed right until the end. I was disappointed when I finished it only because I enjoyed it so much. It is a long and detailed read, but once I got the characters names down pat, it just took off soaring and whisked me away to a world I could never have fathomed, but am grateful that Smith brought it to me!

It's good to have the Courtney's & Ballantine's back !

Ever since Wilbur Smith moved out of the SAR, we were deprieved of the great novels of the Ballantyne's and Courtney's. Can not say that the Egyptian Series were not to his standards, but it is thanks to the original series that I became an avid reader of his, therefore a huge WELCOME BACK !

With the exception of the courtroom section of the book that I found a wee bit too "Grishamesque", I have to say that this is again a great novel and I do hope that the series continue.

Munir HAMAMCIOGLU- Istanbul, Türkiye

Wilbur Smith is a long established author of good books

I don't think it is any secret that Wilbur Smith can write. I first started reading his Egyptian series in the mid-seventies. I also believe that his novel "Birds of Prey" is one of the best books of all time. The last two books by him I have read, "The Quest" and "Assegai" are both excellant novels, full of adventure and excitment. I appreciate his detail and history of his novels. "Assegai" is a blend of big game hunting and history keeping the reader involved with the story. My exact thoughts after reading "Assegai" was that Wilbur Smith still "has it" after all these years.