The Quest

How dissapointing. I have been a fan for many years and then Wilbur writes this. Well clearly old age must have set in, gone are the days of When the Lion Feeds and here are the days of some fat eunuch who drifts in and out of a fantasy world. I am unable to finish this book as it is full of flowery descriptions, ridiculous characters and drivel. Lets hope Wilbur's next book offers some more contemporary African excitement.

Did Wilbur Smith actually write this? (2/3 people found this helpful)

It is hard to believe that The Quest was written by the same author who had previously given us River God and Warlock.

I exclude The Seventh Scroll as being a commentary on the series rather than a part of it. I must also add that the wicked German, von Schiller, and his mistress Utte reminded me so much of Herr Flick and Helga from 'Allo 'Allo that I could not take them remotely seriously. Nevertheless, the Seventh Scroll was an enjoyable adventure story if nothing more.

But with The Quest we have something far worse, an attempt (it seems) to extend an affair when all passion is spent. The Quest seems scarcely to have been written by Wilbur Smith at all. The characters are wooden and lifeless, the dialogue perfunctory and banal, and the stale story line is tedious. Did he write it with his arm up behind his back? It certainly seems so. I've struggled as far as page 80 and, frankly, I don't want to read any more of it.

However, don't let this put you off River God and Warlock, which are excellent.

A little leftfield for me. (0/0 people found this helpful)

I had this book bought for me for xmas. I am an avid WS Egypt fan and was really excited. To be fair, I really quite enjoyed the story, I could find some logic in the story and went with it quite happily until Taita 'became a man'. I agree with another review, he then was not the Taita we all know and love. Why not give them back in the afterworld like Wilbur promised in past stories.Three stars because 3/5ths were great!

A disappointment? Not surprising... (0/0 people found this helpful)

Many of Wilbur S's fans are clearly aggrieved: The Master has turned in a bummer, it seems. I've always had mixed feelings about Smith, and I have to say there are many people to whom I would not admit having read his books. I mean, I'm a graduate, a former English teacher, literate, work as a freelance journo, and so on. But when teaching, I would always hold up Smith (and others, such as Jeffrey Archer, the better Mills & Boon authors) as prime examples of writers who might not pass the Great Writer test but were most assuredly natural-born storytellers.
This is the secret of Smith's success: his characters might be two-dimensional, his grasp of contemporary mores slender, his attitudes to e.g. race, slavery and so on verging on the fascistic, his dialogue banal, his pages filled with slaveringly-depicted scenes of mutilation & depravity that might greatly interest a coven of psychoanalysts for years... And much more besides. But he tells wonderful stories! He's a natural.
This is what has kept me going through The Quest, and compels me to award it three stars: his defects might be exaggerated in this latest novel, but it rattles along almost as well as some of his triumphant Courtney/Ballantyne stuff. It offers pretty darn good escapist entertainment for a few hours, better than most TV. And has anyone else mentioned that Smith is getting on a bit? Must be in his 70s, so not surprising he yearns for the sexual potency of his youth and bangs on about the charms of young Fenn, his "ward" (Hah! shades of Victorian melodrama) in a somewhat feverish way. He's past his prime. Maybe the next novel will recover the Wilbur Smith style we've appreciated all these years, but we cannot count on it. Time to call it a day, Wilbur? You've had a very good run.

A Avid Wilbur Smith Fan (0/0 people found this helpful)

Being an avid Wilbur Smith fan this book is a great disappointment, I think other reviewers have already covered all the salient points. Other than their comments I only have to add that I bought this back in July 2007 and have yet to finish it. With previous books I could not put down until finished. Very disappointed Mr Smith.

Wilbur Smith

Reader Reviews:

Is Mr Smith Past It? (0/0 people found this helpful)

Did Wilbur Smith actually write this? (2/3 people found this helpful)

A little leftfield for me. (0/0 people found this helpful)

A disappointment? Not surprising... (0/0 people found this helpful)

A Avid Wilbur Smith Fan (0/0 people found this helpful)

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