Genghis: Birth of an Empire: A Novel: 1 (The Khan Dynasty)

Excellent book. If you are not into history but still want to learn about the largest empire in the world - the dynasty of Gengis Khan, in a simple and interesting way, then this trilogy is for you ! I always wanted to understand world history, but traditional history books are usually written in a very heavy manner and always puts me to sleep. Conn Iggulden writes easily , converting the mythical figure from our history books into a real person and makes reading about his war tactics, and the incredible life story of the great man a real treat ! The first book deals with the child Gengis, and his youth years and is the best book in the series I felt and the other two books continue the story of the great khan as he goes on to conquer lands from China to Russia and reach Italy to create the largest empire in the history of mankind. A must read for non-history buffs and fiction lovers and once you read and know about the complicated story of Gengis Khan is this fun and action paced manner, perhaps you can further your understanding by picking up an even more detailed, and more traditional 'history' book as well. Pls rate this review if you found it helpful as it really encourages me to write more of these ! :D

Book is worth while to read and to know the bravery, cleavery, war tactics. Though he has killed more people than any one in the word. I have read some where that due such killing 10% of CO2 was reduced from atmosphere in the world. Thanks.

Nice read - Its keeps you interested - the history foot notes in the end is a nice touch

This is the first Conn Iggulden book that I have read and I must say that this is an amazing read. Iggulden's narrative unfolds like a hollywood movie that leaves the audience gasping for more. A must read

Amazing , thrilling, fabulous.

brilliant read!

Get ready for the Journey.The plains are too cold.This is great start for a great series about Genghis.This Part one is really thrilling as it goes through the struggles and quick battles of young Genghis in the Plains.Betrayal,affection,courage,back stabbing ...yes its a mix of all here.Get used to the names of th tribes and you need them for the next part.Interestingly we get to know about the mysterious and untouched geography of Mongolia and its Neighbours.The culture and practices of those Wolf tribes are explained spectacularly in a no boring way.The raid scenes and war are really gripping.A History begins...........

Happy

I'm giving a review of the whole series so forgive me if not a specific review to this book. I read the books themselves a few years ago in paperback and loved them, and recently needed something for my kindle whilst on holiday and decided to reread them - and I'm so glad I did, if anything I enjoyed them even more this time around and read the 5 books back to back. To me this really is story telling at its finest - they may not be 100% accurate in terms of historical facts and Iggulden does indulge some theories of his own where history doesn't have the answers - but who cares!! This all adds to the enjoyment of the read. The story of the Mongols and the manner in which Temujin becomes Genghis, uniting the tribes under one banner is electrifying. The hardships he bears, from the betrayal of his mother's family, that result in the death of his beloved father, to the betrayal by his father's bondsman and his own older brother, shaped this man to become one of history's most brilliant, most brutal and most effective warriors and leaders. The story told here of how Genghis, along with his brothers, took tribes of wandering nomads and turned them into a terrifying war machine, that conquered and forged the largest empire since Alexander the Great. Though Genghis had no interest in the mechanics of governing the nations he conquered, the Khans that followed him did and set in place changes that affected the World to come. And but for the unfortunate death of Ogedai Khan, who followed Genghis, and the fact that the Tumans (armies) had to come home to take part in the ceremonies involved in naming a new Khan, the Mongols having reached as far West as Poland and Hungary, under the brilliance of General Tsubodai, would have gone on to conquer through the lands of Austria, Italy and maybe Germany and France. No other armed force at this time was able to stop the Mongols, their tactics and weapons beyond anything else the Western powers had. The Mongols were the original architects of the 'lighting war', using speed and surprise to vanquish their enemies, tactics adopted by the Germans hundreds of years later, the blitzkrieg. It is one of history's biggest 'what ifs' - if Ogedai had lasted a year or so more, just how far west would the Mongol armies have conquered, and how much different would history have been? The books are breathtakingly at times, the battles, the conflicts, the loss of life. But they are also full of beauty, humour and triumph, and show that the Mongols were not the uncultured, unintelligent savages that perhaps history sometimes makes them out to be. The stories involving Jochi, his first born son are heart breaking at times, as are the parts where Tolui gives his life for his Khan and older brother Ogedai. The books end with probably the most famous Khan after Genghis, Kublai Khan, coming to power having vanquished his own brother. The Mongols are at the height of the powers and are at this time are still force under one man. This is not how it remains for long and there is undoubtedly potential for another whole series of books telling the rest of Kublai's story, about the Golden Horde in the northern landscapes of Russia, and how the Mongols help to shape events in the Islamic world of central Asia. And of course how Kublai Khan went on to play such a crucial role in China - a land that Genghis had tried to destroy and obliterate, his grandson went on to build up into a world power. I really hope Conn Iggulden does go back to the Mongols and offers us more of his brilliant story telling. In the meantime I urge you to read all of the Conqueror series, they are a fantastic read and books you will want to read again and again.

L'auteur est un vrai historien qui fait beacoup de recherches avant d'écrire.Pourtant le livre se lit comme un roman. C'est à dire que ce n'est jamais ennuyeux. Nous avons acheté tous les livres de cet auteur.

This book, Wolf of the Plains, is the first in a series of 5 books about Ghengis Khan and the Mongols. I read this book after I had read the next 3 books in the series, Bones of the Hill, Lords of the Bow, and Empire of Silver. There is another book in the series called, Conqueror, which I plan to also read. This historical fiction series is about the Mongols of Asia and the rise and fall of their leader Ghengis Khan. As a fiction Iggulden takes literary freedom to entertain the reader. Most historical narratives, it can be argued, are written through the eyes of the author and present the authors side of the history. At least if it is written as historical fiction, we can accept some variances in actual facts. We can be entertained as we get an education of the rise of Ghengis Khan. Iggulden does a masterful job of piecing this story into an epic read. He goes to great length to describe the harsh life of the plains of north east Asia. When Ghengis' father is killed and his family is ousted from the tribe of wolves, they must eke out a survival under the most dire of conditions. The survival of the family and rise of Ghengis as a uniting force of disparate Mongols to combat common foes is a great read. The brutal life leads to a brutal Ghengis. Expect blood and merciless killing but do not condemn the book or series based on descriptive battles. This was the harsh reality of the times and location. Reading this book out of sequence did not distract from what was revealed in the following books. The reader should read this book first but it is more important to read the remaining books in sequence.

Where to begin? It was such an amazing series! I love historical fictions, they give you a front row seat into how our world was shaped while breathing life into long dead people. This series did that and MORE! I recommend starting at the first book and, if you are half as into these books as I was, you won't be able to put them down. Pros: - Battle scenes, very descriptive and exciting. I would like to congratulate the author on keeping the types of battles written throughout the series fresh and interesting. They fought constantly for generations but always a new location, new odds, new strategy, new obstacles. Very EXCITING! -Character development. The number of characters is never overwhelming and you become emotionally invested in their lives. They have varying personalities, goals, dreams, while still keeping a bit of humor. -Extremely well written -Great mix of historical fact and page turning dramas. I really enjoyed understanding the life of the Mongols. They are strong people. Very impressive. -Scenery descriptions, I loved the changes in scenery and I have a much deeper understanding of the climate and environment of the Mongol, Asian, and Islamic parts of the world. Plus the struggles that had to over come to survive and conquer. -Assassins~! Only the Mongols would take on assassin strong holds... The author truly captures the essence of this book in his final note: "This story began as a single starving family, hunted and alone on the plains of Mongolia -- and ends with Kublai Khan ruling an empire larger than that of Julius Ceaser or Alexander the Great. Over just three generations, that is simply the greatest rags-to-riches tale in human history" Conn Iggulden I am now going to read his Ceaser series and any other historical fiction Conn Iggulden writes!! WONDERFUL!!!!

This is a fascinating story broadly based on history and written in a captivating way. The trials and tribulations of young Ghengis had me enthralled.