Genghis: Bones of the Hills: A Novel (The Khan Dynasty)

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!!!!

Any novel that takes on the life of the Mongolian conqueror Genghis Khan has to be dramatic and sweeping in its scale, to do justice to the enigmatic life of its subject. Conn Iggulden's Genghis: Bones of the Hill was my first Kindle purchase and a great introduction into the author's view of Mongolian steppe life. I'm late to the Khan series and reading the books out of sequence, but Iggulden completely immerses his reader in the storyline, so that I had a good feeling for the character development from the two earlier novels. Genghis' sons, brothers, and generals have completed bloody military campaigns against the Khan's enemies. On the southern steppes, the great general Tsubodai has defeated Russians in battle with the support of Jochi, Genghis' eldest son. In the kingdom of Koryo, the second Chagatai and General Jelme await the full submission of the Koryon emperor. On the outskirts of Chin lands, Genghis' brother Khasar with the Khan's third son Ogedai plans the final destruction of Kaifeng. All receive the summons to return home at Genghis' command because he plans to make war on the Islamic dynasty of Khwarezmia. The relationships in the novel bear a tremendous strain, the most obvious being the conflicts between Genghis and Jochi, and in turn, Jochi and Chagatai. The divisions stem from Jochi's conception. Early in Genghis' first marriage, his wife was stolen and given away to another man. He rescued her and within a year, she gave birth to Jochi. Genghis cannot forgive his son for the circumstances of his conception, and Chagatai as his brother's rival refuses to follow "the rape-born whelp," his favorite term for Jochi. He even goes so far as goading Jochi into fighting a tiger, and nearly deserting him in a key moment of battle. Jochi's resentment is painfully laid bare on the pages, and his plight is sympathetic. When Genghis sends his family and generals against the Khwarezmia Dynasty, Iggulden also provides the viewpoint of the enemy, the Shah Alaudin and his eldest son, Jelaudin. Iggulden shows great skill in portraying equally sympathetic antagonists and protagonists. The Shah and his son begin with the intent of destroying the Mongol invaders, but soon Alaudin dies and Jelaudin must struggle to assume his father's power. Everything about life on the steppes is hard for the characters, whether in the daily struggle to survive brutal weather or fierce conflicts, or in the punishments they mete out to various enemies. Each character is fully fleshed out, their emotions deftly sketched. Iggulden makes the reader feel Genghis' righteous fury against the Shah for the deaths of his men, his general Tsubodai's sadness when the Khan asks him to commit a murder that goes against his principles, and Jelaudin's religious fervor, in equal parts. While Amazon reviews are sharply divided over the merits of Iggulden's writing, I loved Genghis: Bones of the Hill, even for its bittersweet ending. I look forward to reading an advance copy of the next title from Iggulden, Khan: Empire of Silver.

This series is amazing! I tried the first book so see what I thought about some Ghengis Khan story telling and I was hooked. The book is brings you in quick, I found it entertaining, educational, and just a damn fun read. One of my friends is now reading them. Highly recommended reading if you love historical fiction.

One of the dangers of sequels is the fact of unfulfilled expectations - how can a sequel be as interesting or compelling as the original? How can the author bring something new to the table without losing that which made the original interesting? In Bones of the Hills, the well-researched historical novel continues the story of Ghengis Kahn, a history not really well known in the West. Having overcome mythically-awful tests as a youth to rise to power, and having conquered the Chin in the first novel, in this sequal we see him turn west to consolidate and expand his growing empire. In addition to the blood-and-guts battles, the chilling brutality of the camp, and the intrigue of a wide number of well-drawn characters, we see in this book the development of his sons - and the obvious seeds for future dispute. This is a saga about turning a group of tribes into a true Empire, absorbing what they need and what they can from those they conquer. The book accomplishes what good historical fiction must do: it provides a sense of place and time, while also being a terrific read. It left me eager for the next in the series.

Wonderful book, but I am horrified to discover that, once again, the electronic version of a book costs more than the paperback. Book publishers have not learned from music companies: squeezing your customers to sustain an outdated business model will kill your industry.

Conn is perfect ! Great letter size. Perfect for me (46 years and WC-reader). No.4-Order placed. Why no German Version ?

I bought the first book of the series on sale, and quickly became so hooked that I had to immediately buy the entire set. What a wonderful way to learn history! It was very easy to become attached to characters and enmeshed in the story. The quality of the writing didn’t diminish as the series progressed. The books are well researched and provide insight into the cultures of the region and era. I totally recommend the series.

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.

Il s'agit du troisième et dernier tome de la biographie romancée de Genghis Khan par Conn Iggulden. Comme dans les tomes précédents on est littéralement transportés sur les traces de ce conquérant hors normes. On découvre avec stupeur le mode de vie et les coutumes de ce peuple qui a conquis presque un quart de l'humanité. Ce n'est certes pas de l'ethnographie mais le dépaysement est total. Un grand moment de plaisir même si le héros meurt à la fin mais ce n'est pas une surprise ;). Les notes de l'auteur à la fin de chaque tome sont un plus appréciable puisqu'il explique à quels moments il s'est arrangé avec l'Histoire. Un must.