---

From master storyteller Wilbur Smith, a sweeping adventure in the gripping Ballantyne Series

---

Zouga was left alone, as alone in spirit as he had ever been in any of his wanderings across the vast African continent. He had spent almost the last penny he owned on these few square feet of yellow earth at the bottom of this hot and dusty pit. He had no men to help him work it, no experience, no capital.

A tribal battle. An Empire´s war.

Zouga Ballantyne has in his blood a fanatic´s need to find diamonds, one that will take him to Southern Africa´s most punishing places. Losing his wife to one of the many sicknesses that haunt the diamond mine camp, Zouga and his sons must find another way through the country, helping to build the British Empire, and developing their own form of civilisation in the face of tribal opposition. But the Ballantyne family success comes at a price - the sacrifice of the local Matabele tribe, who have tried to live alongside the colonists, but are slowly losing everything. In the face of exploitation, violence and greed, who will triumph in the land of ruthless men?

The second book in the epic Ballantyne Series

---

Wilbur Smith is a global phenomenon: a distinguished author with a large and established readership built up over fifty-five years of writing, with sales of over 130 million novels worldwide.
Born in Central Africa in 1933, Wilbur became a full-time writer in 1964 following the success of When the Lion Feeds , and has since published forty-one global bestsellers, including the Courtney Series, the Ballantyne Series, the Egyptian Series, the Hector Cross Series and many successful standalone novels, all meticulously researched on his numerous expeditions worldwide. His books have now been translated into twenty-six languages.
The establishment of the Wilbur & Niso Smith Foundation in 2015 cemented Wilbur´s passion for empowering writers, promoting literacy and advancing adventure writing as a genre. The foundation´s flagship programme is the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize.
For all the latest information on Wilbur visit www.wilbursmithbooks.com or facebook.com/WilburSmith

---