Showing results for title "Empire of Sand" in Literature & Fiction

After four trips to the Sahara and extensive historical research, David Ball crafted this sweeping adventure novel spanning two continents and 15 years. Set against a backdrop of the crumbling French Empire’s attempts to colonize the Sahara Desert, Empires of Sand follows the lives of two cousins who are raised as brothers but destined to become enemies. It is 1870, and France is at war with Prussia.

Judaea in AD 46. Roman centurions Cato and Macro have been posted to Judaea for a 'hearts and minds' operation. The Empire needs to win over the locals after some of their religious figures have started revolts - and since the Romans crucified the last charismatic Judaean leader, the natives' rebellions have become bolder. Not only are these small villages causing trouble, but there are also thousands of Parthians eager to fight Rome. With the threat of suicide attacks and even all-out war, Cato and Macro have their peace-keeping work cut out....

The Amrithi are outcasts; nomads descended of desert spirits, they are coveted and persecuted throughout the Empire for the power in their blood. Mehr is the illegitimate daughter of an imperial governor and an exiled Amrithi mother she can barely remember, but whose face and magic she has inherited. When Mehr's power comes to the attention of the Emperor's most feared mystics, she must use every ounce of will, subtlety, and power she possesses to resist their cruel agenda. Should she fail, the gods themselves may awaken seeking vengeance.

Prophecy declared that corrupt politician Corajidin would rule the Shrīanese Federation, even become its new Emperor - and sinister magic has helped him defy death in order to do it. But his victory is not assured, thanks to clashing rival factions that hinder any attempts to unify the nation. Though he has taken increasingly brutal measures to eliminate all obstacles in his path, the dark forces supporting him grow dangerously impatient. And the harder they press, the more drastic Corajidin’s actions become.

Mehr is a girl trapped between two cultures. Her father comes from the ruling classes of the empire but her mother's people were outcasts, Amrithi nomads who worshipped the spirits of the sands. Caught one night performing these forbidden rites, Mehr is brought to the attention of the Emperor's most feared mystics, who force her into their service by way of an arranged marriage. She discovers that her new husband is a mysterious, enslaved Amrithi with abilities like her own: together they must use every ounce of cunning, power and will they possess to resist the order's cruel agenda.

As the future of Europe is being decided in the muddy trenches of the Western Front, Lieutenant Thomas Edward Lawrence is thousands of miles away, toiling in the map room of the British Army’s general headquarters in Cairo. But the young intelligence officer has big ideas - none bigger than his vision of a unified Arabia free of its Ottoman rulers. Before T. E. Lawrence can become Lawrence of Arabia, however, he must first contend with the notorious German spy Wilhelm Wassmuss.