Empires of Sand

by David Ball

Book Overview

From the mysteriously beautiful, richly hued landscape of the Saharan mountains to the sumptuous splendor of nineteenth-century Paris, Empires of Sand is a novel that takes us on an extraordinary,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0553110144
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: Bantam
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 1.86 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 1.5" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

How Can This be A First Effort? A True Epic Adventure!

David Ball's first novel, "Empires of Sand," is an explosion of adventure, history, and good old fashioned storytelling. Spannin several years and two continents, "Empires" tells an epic-yet-intimate story of family caught betwixt and between two dynamic cultures. Most of the first half of the novel is set in Paris in the 1860s. The Count Henri deVries has shocked French society by marrying a beauty from the Sahara: Serena, a princess of the Tuareg, the infamous "blue men" of the Sahara. Their son, Moussa, romps across the Parisian countryside with his beloved cousin Paul, son to an overly proud military man and an overly ambitous socialite. Together, Paul and Moussa get into any number of scrapes, although it's not clear whether a mammoth wild boar is more dangerous than their fourth-grade teacher, a caustic nun named Sister Godrick. Or, quite possibly, the most virulent threat to their happiness is a deceitful bishop who sits astride Paris like a monstrous, bloated spider, spinning webs and dispensing poison. Paris is shattered when the French allow themselves to be goaded into a war they cannot win against the Prussians, and some of the novel's most powerful scenes come from the epic Prussian siege of Paris. After considerable mayhem, duplicity, treachery, and a dollop of murder, tragedy befalls the deVries family and the action shifts to the Sahara and leaps forward several years. Now living among his mother's desert people, Moussa learns a truth that was prophesied when his mother first announced her devotion to Henri deVries -- he will forever be exiled from both his French and Tuareg heritage. While Ball has some fun showing the Tuareg reactions to some of Moussa's eccentricities (such as bathing), in general Moussa's mixed parentage is a heavy cross to bear. Still, Moussa is finding his way, with difficulty, in this desert paradise. Things will soon come to a boil, however, as the French are seeking to assuage their national shame at the hands of the Prussians by building a monumental railroad across the Sahara. Paul is eager to visit Moussa's homeland, even though Moussa and Paul mistakenly believe each other are dead. Paul eventually signs on to the real-life and horrendously ill-fated "Flatters expedition," which is virtually wiped out by the violent Tuareg. Scarred by the horrific carnage on the expedition, Paul becomes the most feared enemy the Tuareg have ever faced. Ball balances all these major elements of war and political intrigue with several intimate storylines of love, family and friendship. He shows a real gift for capturing the youthful perspective of Paul and Moussa as children and then giving each character a realistic, more mature voice in their later years. Battle scenes are handled exquisitely, and Ball is equally at home describing the bucolic French countryside as he is describing the harsh beauty of the Sahara. Chock full of details, "Empires" is a well-researched work of historical fiction

Nothing short of outstanding..........

Okay, so there's some predictability, but David Ball has written a novel so completely fun and absorbing that one simply doesn't care. From 1870's Paris to the limitless expanse of the Sahara, Ball takes the reader on a remarkable journey that is truly extraordinary. The novels main characters, cousins Moussa and Paul DeVries, battle invading Prussians, corrupt clergy, treacherous relatives, and merciless bedouins in an attempt to establish lives separate from the tragedy of their youth within the French nobility. Moussa, his father a French count and his mother a Taureg noblewoman of the Sahara, is forced to flee Paris for Africa with his family. His cousin Paul is left behind with his own ghosts to exorcise. The two find each other again years later caught in the confrontations endemic to the European colonization of Africa. What ensues is a purely spellbinding tale of love and hate, life and death, beauty and utter ugliness.Empire of Sands is an excellent novel. I thought of it often between the times I was forced set it down until my next opportunity to continue. For anyone who enjoys a captivating historically-based tale they will find few books far better than this. As a huge fan of historical fiction, I give it my highest recommendation.

historic fiction at its best

A conversation with my father(a great lover of books) way back when I was in high school and disdainful of anything to do with history, led him to give me a book (over the whispered protests of my mother because of the sex scenes)called the Golden Hawk by Frank Yerby. Talk about swashbuckling adventure! great romance, and exotic lands I'd payed only vague attention to as a student. And in the process of devouring this great story I found myself actually enjoying learning about the history, geography, and the culture. Wasn't this cheating? Well, ever since, I have been hooked on historical fiction...Leon Uris, James Clavell, Pearl Buck, M.M. Kaye, Steven Pressfield...the list goes on and on. I add to it now the name of David Ball, first-time author and storyteller extraordinaire. Start to finish, I enjoyed every word, loved every adventure. This guy can write. And his love and knowledge of The Sahara and Africa is obvious - I was transported. I am one of those (rare?) people who likes a good, long story. My only criticism would be that he didn't entertain me with a few more years of the deVries family saga. This is historic fiction at its best.

A Wonderful Book

Rarely do I stray from the ranks of the mystery/thriller genre, unless it is one of those great epic adventure stories like The Far Pavillions, some of Mitchner's books, the Clan series and others... I picked this book up just to give myself a break and COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. It is an adventure to read with descriptions that make you think you are there. Do yourself a favor and take the time to read this book. You will not be sorry.

What a storyteller

I loved this book and just happened to pick it up upon the advice of my brilliant librarian. It was the kind of book I couldn't put down, yet hated to finish.The highlights have been discussed in previous reviews but Ball's storytelling skills are phenomenal. And, the history is fascinating; I'd never heard of the Flatters Expedition despite my M.A. in History. I've discovered Ball has a website at empiresofsand.com. Check out the web site and book. What a find.