Wilbur Smith

Wilbur Smith

Wilbur Smith was born in Kabwe, Zambia on January 9th, 1933 and passed away at the age of 88 on November 13th, 2021.

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Wilbur Smith Stats: The highest rated book by Wilbur Smith on Book Notification is When the Lion Feeds, the first novel in the Courtney series. The second-highest rated book is Warlock (Ancient Egypt #3).

The most read book by Wilbur Smith on Book Notification is River God, the first novel in the Ancient Egypt series. The second most read book is When the Lion Feeds (Courtney #1).

Below is a complete list of Wilbur Smith books in publication and chronological order, broken down by series. The most popular series by Wilbur Smith is the Courtney Series.

List of Courtney Books in Publication Order

# ReadTitle Avg. Year Book Link
1
10
When the Lion Feeds
1964
2
7.3
The Sound of Thunder / The Roar of Thunder
1966
3
10
A Sparrow Falls
1977
4
8
The Burning Shore
1985
5
8
Power of the Sword
1986
6
8
Rage
1987
7
8
A Time to Die
1989
8
8
Golden Fox
1990
9
9
The Triumph of the Sun
1992
10
10
Birds of Prey
1997
11
9
Monsoon
1999
12
10
Blue Horizon
2003
13
9
Assegai
2009
14
10
Golden Lion (With: Giles Kristian)
2015
15
10
War Cry (With: David Churchill)
2017
16
9
The Tiger's Prey (With: Tom Harper)
2017
17
9.3
Courtney's War (With: David Churchill)
2018
18
10
King of Kings
2019
19
10
Ghost Fire (With: Tom Harper)
2019
20
Legacy of War (With: David Churchill)
2021
21
Storm Tide (With: Tom Harper)
2022
22
Nemesis (With: Tom Harper)
2023
23
Warrior King (With: Tom Harper)
2024

List of Courtney Series in Chronological Order

#ReadTitle Avg. Year Book Link
1
10
Birds of Prey
1997
2
10
Golden Lion (With: Giles Kristian)
2015
3
9
Monsoon
1999
4
9
The Tiger's Prey (With: Tom Harper)
2017
5
10
Blue Horizon
2003
6
10
Ghost Fire (With: Tom Harper)
2019
7
Storm Tide (With: Tom Harper)
2022
8
Nemesis (With: Tom Harper)
2023
9
10
When the Lion Feeds
1964
10
9
The Triumph of the Sun
1992
11
10
King of Kings
2019
12
7.3
The Sound of Thunder / The Roar of Thunder
1966
13
9
Assegai
2009
14
8
The Burning Shore
1985
15
10
A Sparrow Falls
1977
16
10
War Cry (With: David Churchill)
2017
17
9.3
Courtney's War (With: David Churchill)
2018
18
Legacy of War (With: David Churchill)
2021
19
8
Power of the Sword
1986
20
8
Rage
1987
21
8
Golden Fox
1990
22
8
A Time to Die
1989
23
Warrior King (With: Tom Harper)
2024

List of Jack Courtney Books in Publication Order

List of Ballantyne Books in Publication Order

List of Ballantyne Series in Chronological Order

#ReadTitle Avg. Year Book Link
1
10
Call of the Raven (With: Corban Addison)
2020
2
A Falcon Flies / Flight of the Falcon
1980
3
Men of Men
1981
4
9
The Triumph of the Sun
1992
4
9
The Triumph of the Sun
1992
5
10
King of Kings
2019
5
10
King of Kings
2019
6
Fire on the Horizon
2024
7
The Angels Weep
1982
8
The Leopard Hunts in Darkness
1984

List of Ancient Egypt Books in Publication Order

List of Ancient Egypt Series in Chronological Order

List of Hector Cross Books in Publication Order

List of Standalone Novels in Publication Order

# ReadTitle Avg. Year Book Link
1
The Dark of the Sun / The Train from Katanga
1965
2
8
Shout at the Devil
1968
3
Gold Mine
1970
4
The Diamond Hunters
1971
5
9
The Sunbird
1972
6
The Eye of the Tiger
1974
7
Cry Wolf
1976
8
8
Hungry as the Sea
1978
9
Wild Justice / The Delta Decision
1979
10
10
Eagle in the Sky
1980
11
Elephant Song
1991

List of Non-Fiction Books in Publication Order

Wilbur Smith: Biography

Wilbur Smith (Wilbur Addison Smith) was born on January 9th, 1933. Wilbur passed away November 13th, 2021 at 88 years old. Wilbur Smith was born in Kabwe, Zambia.

Wilbur Smith was the author of the Courtney series which consists of 23 novels. The Courtney series started in 1964 with the novel When the Lion Feeds. The most recently released novel in the Courtney series was Nemesis which was released in 2023. There is an upcoming novel for the Courtney series entitled Warrior King which is being released on June 25th, 2024.

Wilbur Smith has appeared on the Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! international list one time. His novel The Eye of the Tiger was ranked #7 in 1991.

War Cry was listed among the Best Historical Fiction Thrillers of 2017 by The Real Book Spy.

Wilbur Smith: Awards & Accolades

Wilbur Smith has won multiple awards including: The British Book Awards, Outstanding Achievement, in 1996 and the Crime Thriller Awards, ITV3 Crime Thriller Living Legends, in 2013.

Wilbur Smith: TV/Movies Based on Books

The Dark of the Sun , also known as The Train from Katanga, was made into a movie called Dark of the Sun in 1968. As a side note, that movie also had an alternate title of The Mercenaries. It starred Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimieux, and Kenneth More.

Shout At The Devil was made into a movie in 1976. Wilbur Smith wrote the screenplay for this m movie which starred Lee Marvin and Roger Moore.

Wild Justice, also known as The Delta Decision, was adapted to a movie in 1994. It starred Roy Scheider as Colonel Peter Stride and was directed by Tony Wharmby.

The Seventh Scroll was adapted into a TV mini-series. This aired in 3 parts in 1999. The series was also based on the first novel in the Ancient Egypt series, River God.

In 2001, the standalone novel The Diamond Hunters was converted into a two-episode mini-series. It starred Alyssa Milano and Sean Patrick Flanery.

Related Authors

The most common authors followed by users who also follow Wilbur Smith are:

  1. David Baldacci, author of the Amos Decker Series.
  2. Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher Series.
  3. Michael Connelly, author of the Harry Bosch Series.
  4. John Grisham, author of the Jake Brigance Series.
  5. James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross Series.

Wilbur Smith: F.A.Q

When was Wilbur Smith Born?

Wilbur Smith was born on January 9th, 1933.

When did Wilbur Smith die?

Wilbur Smith died on November 13th, 2021 at 88 years old.

Where was Wilbur Smith Born?

Wilbur Smith was born in Kabwe, Zambia.

What awards has Wilbur Smith won?

Wilbur Smith has won the following awards: Outstanding Achievement at the British Book Awards (1996) and the ITV3 Crime Thriller Living Legends at the Crime Thriller Awards (2013).

What was the first book Wilbur Smith wrote?

The first novel written by Wilbur Smith was When the Lion Feeds, published in 1964.

What was the most recent book Wilbur Smith wrote?

His most recently released work was Testament on October 24th, 2023.

How many books has Wilbur Smith written?

Wilbur Smith has written 56 books across 11 series.
  • 23 books in the Courtney Series
  • 3 books in the Jack Courtney Series
  • 8 books in the Ballantyne Series
  • 9 books in the Ancient Egypt Series
  • 3 books in the Hector Cross Series
  • 11 Standalone Novels
  • 1 Corban Addison Standalone Novels
  • 1 Non-Fiction Books

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    Austin D.
    Austin D.
    2 years ago

    Wilbur’s books are always well researched with some intriguing plots and engaging characters, and is a favorite author when it comes to historical fiction.

    A novel like Ghost Fire, which is one of the best of the Courtney saga, as it is suspenseful and fantastic in Smith’s typical way.

    The Egypt series is his absolute best that he does, and it is always exciting to get a new one from him. Who would play Taita in a movie version, however? It’s been weighing on my mind for years, but there is not a single actor that I could see doing the man justice.

    Edgar A.
    Edgar A.
    2 years ago

    Even though I have always been a fan of thrillers and mysteries, historical novels such as the ones on this list by Wilbur Smith.

    My best Wilbur Smith novel is River God which is a story told from the perspective of a slave in Egypt. What I love about this novel is that it has everything from war, politics and romance.

    Never been a fan of long reads but I found River God at more than 600 pages an easy read as Smith expertly crafted the story and kept the action flowing right to the very end.

    It helps a lot that the lead character Taita is one of the most likable and sweetest characters in the genre.

    When the novel was first recommended to me, I was not so sure I would like it but I ordered it on the spur of the moment but I am glad I did as it introduced me to one of the greatest authors in the historical, mystery and thriller genres.

    Andrew M.
    Andrew M.
    2 years ago

    Wilbur Smith does an excellent job when it comes to historical fiction by creating thrilling stories.
    Courtney series is my favorite; it brings an era of African history to life with a lot of enthusiasm.
    I liked how Smith partitioned the series into three segments for easier understanding.
    The settings are thick with enough details in a way that the only smith could write effectively.
    His work is more polished, with stories the make one feel complete.
    In the Ancient Egypt series, the story is told from an Egyptian slave point of view.
    River God, the debut book in the series, is over 600 pages, but smith managed to keep the action flowing to the last page.
    I also enjoyed The Mercenaries movie based on The Dark of the Sun starring Rod Taylor and Yvette Mimieux.

    Michael K.
    Michael K.
    2 years ago

    Wilbur Smith’s books always felt like they came from a bygone era. I think I was six years old when I read the first novel in the Ancient Egypt series. I found a copy at home, read a few chapters, got bored, and put it down.

    That same copy gathered dust on a shelf at home for several years. But then, in my teens, I gave it another go and loved it. Years later, I joined a university and realized that their library had an entire section dedicated to his work. I read every single book they had.

    When I first came across this list, I was shocked to learn that ‘When the Lion Feeds’ came out in 1964. The publication date explains so much. Wilbur Smith basically came out of a different era.

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