Empires of Sand

Rating:
Summary: Great adventure, rich writing, exotic places.
Review: One of my favorite books is "The Far Pavilions," by M.M. Kaye. I've read it four times. This is one book I'll gladly do the same with. What a marvelous story teller!

Rating:
Summary: cartoonish and silly
Review: I generally like old-fashioned adventure stories, even cornball and hokey ones, but this one just doesn't make it. It isn't very imaginative (although it strains to be) and its characters aren't gripping or even believable. There are a lot of cliches, like an evil priest who drowns someone so he (the priest) can get his (the victim's) vacated post; a desert princess who is miraculously at home in a French castle (transported by her Prince Charming), and the tired old 'best-friends-who-become-mortal-enemies' ploy. Yawn. Not a bit of suspense anywhere, with a lot of cardboard characters jerking across the canvas. Where are H. Rider Haggard and Indiana Jones when you need them? Empires of Sand will give the genre a bad name.

Rating:
Summary: Juicy
Review: "Old-Fashioned" is the best word for this book, in the best meaning of the phrase. "Empires of Sand" is rich, over the top, and unfortunately plagued by anachronisms (Heeeelllo, editors!) But the characters are bold and interesting, the settings are exotic and well detailed, and you are absorbed into a world and historical period rarely visited by fiction. The comparson to James Michener is less accruate than one to MM Keyes and "Far Pavilions."

Rating:
Summary: RARELY DOES IT GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS!!
Review: This is a story that almost takes your breath away. I know that may sound trite, but I actually felt like I was a PART of a fantastic adventure. The author certainly deserves much praise for a FINE effort. Our book club was amazed with this one. We also recommend: The Coldest Winter Ever, and Pseudo Cool! This is definitely a book worth reading again!

Rating:
Summary: What an adventure!
Review: What a book! I especially liked the scenes of the boys Paul and Moussa together in the tunnels beneath the city, when they found a skull and took on the Prussian army with a slingshot. And the rats! I had no idea any of that had really happened. The way it's told is marvelous. This is one I'll read again, and again.

Rating:
Summary: poorly written and conceptually difficult to believe
Review: I was determined to make it through this book as I enjoy adventures - but I could not go any farther when I encountered the scene where a young (blind) French soldier said "Gosh"! This book is very similar to the early days of the romance "bodice rippers".

Rating:
Summary: I will not forget this book for a long time
Review: I can think of only a very few novels that have left me with such vivid images and characters as Empires of Sand. As I got close to the end, I hated that it was almost over. I wanted this book to be twice as long as it was. I can't wait for Mr. Ball's next book.

Rating:
Summary: Swept me away...I couldn't put it down.
Review: This was an amazing book of intriguing characters, mystical locations and exciting events. Clearly a book that captivates and takes you with it. I recommend it highly, if you only read one book this year, make it this one.

Rating:
Summary: Great book -- could NOT put it down!!
Review: I'm in total agreement with amazon's reviewer, Tim Appelo. This book is a great find. Ball's ambitious first novel, Empires of Sand, has it all -- adventure, exploration, intrigue, romance, war, and above all else, great storytelling. I read a lot and a book like this only comes along once in 10 years. I was particularly taken with Ball's descriptions of the desert and the Tuareg, a nomadic tribe in the Sahara. I'm highly recommending it to my reading friends and am anxiously awaiting Ball's second book.

Rating:
Summary: I never read historical fiction-but i read this and loved it
Review: I got this book as a gift. It wasn't the sort of thing I read at all - I'm more a Danielle Steele fan. I took it on vacation, and couldn't put it down. I was swept away by the wonderful scenes of love between Henri and Serena, and by the terrible trials of Paris under siege. The boys dealing with the nun reminded me of a teacher I had myself. How did Moussa do it? It held me to the end like no book has done for years.