130,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Happy Long Weekend! We're open all 3 days! 📚 Open 7 days, 8:30am–5pm

King of Kings

The Ballantynes and Courtneys meet in an epic story of love and betrayal
4.32 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating.
( 2,919 ratings, 169 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
King of Kings by Imogen Robertson and Wilbur Smith is a gripping tale set against the backdrop of the late 19th century. It follows two lovers, Penrod Ballantyne and Amber Benbrook, as they navigate intrigue and betrayal within a world of colonial conflict. Their passion becomes entangled with ambitions, placing them amidst a turbulent adventure that tests the limits of loyalty and power. As the story unfolds, readers are taken on a thrilling journey through the complexities of love and revenge.
Read More
Format: Hardback
$4500
Elsewhere:
$4999
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Perfect for those who revel in epic stories of adventure and intrigue, this gripping thriller blends historical fiction with intense drama. You might enjoy this book if you're drawn to powerful characters navigating complex political landscapes and high-stakes action set against the backdrop of early 20th-century Africa and Europe.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

An epic story of love, betrayal, courage and war that brings together two of Wilbur Smith's greatest families in the sequel to Triumph of the Sun.

The sequel to Wilbur Smith's worldwide bestseller, The Triumph of the Sun.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Cairo, 1887. A beautiful September day. Pernod Ballantyne and his fiancée, Amber Benbrook, stroll hand in hand. The future is theirs for the taking.

But when Penrod's jealous former lover, Lady Agatha, plants doubt about his character, Amber leaves him and travels to the wilds of Abyssinia with her twin sister, Saffron, and her adventurer husband, Ryder Courtney. On a mission to establish a silver mine, they make the dangerous journey to the new capital of Addis Ababa, where they are welcomed by Menelik, the King of Kings. But Italy has designs on Abyssinia, and there are rumours of a plan to invade...

Back in Cairo, a devastated Penrod seeks oblivion in the city's opium dens. When he is rescued by his old friend, Lorenzo De Fonseca, now in the Italian army, and offered the chance to assess the situation around the Abyssinian border, Penrod leaps at the chance of action.

With storm clouds gathering, and on opposing sides of the invasion, can Penrod and Amber find their way back to one another—against all the odds?

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781785768460

Publisher: Zaffre

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 04 April 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Zaffre

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 39.0mm

Width: 162.0mm

Height: 240.0mm

Weight: 645g

Pages: 448

About the Author

Wilbur Smith is a worldwide phenomenon. His readership has built up over fifty-five years of writing. 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.

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

Also by Imogen Robertson

View all
  • Fire on the Horizon
    Fire on the Horizon by Wilbur Smith and Imogen Robertson is an epic historical adventure set against the tumultuous backdrop of South Africa in 1899. The simmering tension between the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State and the British colonies of the Cape and Natal threatens to ignite into full-scale war. As the conflict looms, the lives of...
    Hardback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • King of Kings
    An epic story of love, betrayal, courage, and war that brings together two of Wilbur Smith's greatest families in this long-awaited sequel to his worldwide bestseller, The Triumph of the Sun. Cairo, 1887. A beautiful September day. Penrod Ballantyne and his fiancée, Amber Benbrook, stroll hand in hand. The future is theirs for the taking. But when Penrod's jealous former...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Fire on the Horizon
    Pre-order
    Fire on the Horizon
    Fire on the Horizon by Wilbur Smith and Imogen Robertson is a gripping tale set against the backdrop of South Africa in 1899. The smouldering hostility between the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State and the British colonies of the Cape and Natal is about to burst into flame. War is imminent, and no one can prevent it....
    Paperback
    $2799
    Pre-order
    Out 1 Dec 2026

Also by Wilbur Smith

View all
  • Flashpoint
    New Release
    Flashpoint
    AN IMPOSSIBLE MISSION. A QUEST FOR THE TRUTH. ONLY SHE HAS WHAT IT TAKES 1943, America: SOE's Saffron Courtney is back in New York, but even as she recovers from her mission to Washington, events on the other side of the Atlantic are making her return to England inevitable. The War Office need someone to extract an asset - a...
    Hardback
    $3599
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    12% off
    Vengeance
    ENEMIES BY BIRTH. BROTHERS IN BLOOD. Praise for Wilbur Smith 'A master storyteller' — Sunday Times 'No one does adventure quite like Smith' — Daily Mirror 'Best historical novelist' — Stephen King Van Diemen's Land, 1835 Ralph Courtney has had everything taken from him — his wife, his son, his fortune, his freedom. Chased from the hills of Zululand, he...
    Hardback
    $2900
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • House of Two Pharaohs
    FROM THE SHADOWS. A NEW EVIL WILL RISE. FACELESS. NAMELESS. Since his appointment as Nomarch of Memphis by the God-Pharaoh Rameses, Piay has thrown himself into pulling the city back from the brink. The famous white city walls have been rebuilt, the once starving inhabitants fed, and every day caravans have arrived from the desert wastes, filled with the many...
    Hardback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Courtney's War
    Torn apart by war, Saffron Courtney and Gerhard von Meerbach are thousands of miles apart, both struggling for their lives. Gerhard—despite his objections to the Nazi regime—is fighting for the Fatherland, hoping to one day have the opportunity to rid Germany of Hitler and his cronies. But as his unit is thrown into the hellish attrition of the Battle of...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The New Kingdom
    In the heart of Egypt Under the watchful eye of the gods A new power is rising In the city of Lahun, Hui lives an enchanted life. The favoured son of a doting father and ruler-in-waiting of the great city, his fate is set. But behind the beautiful façades, a sinister evil is plotting. Craving power and embittered by jealousy,...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • When the Lion Feeds
    A special reissue of the first book in Wilbur Smith's long-running Courtney Series to mark the 60th anniversary. With an introduction by bestselling author, Conn Iggulden. Brothers by birth. Enemies by blood. Natal, 1860; the Courtney twins are born. Heirs to their father's fortune, destiny divides the boys from the start - Garrick is eager to stay indoors with a...
    Paperback
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    19% off
    Elephant Song
    The poachers that come across this side are organised and better armed than we are. They shoot to kill - men as well as elephants and rhino. We have been forced to do the same. If we run into a band of poachers, we shoot first. Who sings for the lost country? Dr Daniel Armstrong, ecologist and documentary maker, has...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Fire on the Horizon
    Fire on the Horizon by Wilbur Smith and Imogen Robertson is an epic historical adventure set against the tumultuous backdrop of South Africa in 1899. The simmering tension between the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State and the British colonies of the Cape and Natal threatens to ignite into full-scale war. As the conflict looms, the lives of...
    Hardback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Nemesis
    A FIGHT FOR HONOUR. A QUEST FOR REVENGE. Paris, 1794. Revolutionary fervour has erupted into the Reign of Terror. A young man, Paul Courtney, hides in a crowd watching as the condemned are brought to the guillotine. Among them is Constance Courtney, Paul's mother. As he watches her brutal execution, he knows he must avoid the same fate and fulfil...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Legacy of War
    The action-packed new book in the Courtney Series and the sequel to Courtney's War. The war is over, Hitler is dead - and yet his evil legacy lives on. Saffron Courtney and her beloved husband Gerhard only just survived the brutal conflict, but Gerhard's Nazi-supporting brother, Konrad, is still free and determined to regain power. As a dangerous game of...
    Hardback
    $1999
    Elsewhere:
    $5500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Pharaoh
    A thrilling new instalment in Wilbur Smith's beloved Egyptian series. 'A blazing trip into the land of the Pharaohs from a giant of a writer' Australian Women's Weekly Egypt is under attack. All seems lost. After snatching victory from almost-certain defeat, ex-slave Taita, general of Egypt's armies, returns in triumph to the ancient city of Luxor. But the old ruler...
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2699
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Ghost Fire
    In this brand new Courtney Series novel by bestselling author Wilbur Smith, comes an epic story of tragedy, loss, betrayal and courage that brings the reader deep into the seething heart of the French and Indian War. 1754. Inseparable since birth and growing up in India, Theo and Connie Courtney are torn apart by the tragic death of their parents....
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today

More from Crime & Thriller

View all
  • New Release
    King’s Ransom
    Five innocent hostages. Five private investigators. A fiendish ransom game. Has Detective Sam Speedman met his match? A fast and deadly Matthew Reilly thriller. A DARING ABDUCTION The richest man in the world has been kidnapped. Along with four of his children. THE DEADLY CHALLENGE The kidnapper's demand: the five best private detectives in America must come to the missing...
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3499
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The French Illusion
    Bestselling author John Grisham delivers a new gripping, suspenseful page-turner about aParis honeymoon gone horribly wrong - and the nightmare that follows. After Paul and Chelsea Tanner's fairytale wedding, their future is full of promise. But their honeymoon to Paris takes a dark, shocking turn when they are kidnapped while on a day trip to the French countryside. Who would...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • King’s Ransom
    New Release
    King’s Ransom
    Five innocent hostages. Five private investigators. A fiendish ransom game. Has Detective Sam Speedman met his match? A fast and deadly Matthew Reilly thriller. A DARING ABDUCTION The richest man in the world has been kidnapped. Along with four of his children. THE DEADLY CHALLENGE The kidnapper's demand: the five best private detectives in America must come to the missing...
    Hardback
    $4499
    Elsewhere:
    $4999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    Chain Reaction
    Jack Reacher, \"the coolest continuing series character\" (Stephen King), returns in a brand new, pulse-pounding read from Lee and Andrew Child. The world’s bestselling hero is back in a brand new, high-octane adventure! ‘She knew that finding Reacher would not be easy . . .’ Washington DC. General Susan Turner needs help from the only guy she knows will get...
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    The Family Cross
    In the gripping new thriller in James Patterson's globally bestselling series, Alex Cross faces his most personal case yet as a ruthless conspiracy targets Washington's most vulnerable... and his own family. Discover the latest gripping thriller in the globally bestselling Alex Cross series - now the inspiration for the original series CROSS on Prime Video starring Aldis Hodge as Alex...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Heights
    In The Heights by #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sir Ian Rankin, murder comes to London's most exclusive high-rise - and every resident is a suspect... MURDER COMES TO LONDON'S MOST LUXURIOUS HIGH-RISE: AND EVERY RESIDENT IS A SUSPECT. The Heights: a gleaming, high-end high-rise looming over Hyde Park. Newly built from steel and smoked glass, it is a billionaire's playground offering sumptuous suites...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    Backorder
    Ships mid November
  • New Release
    Death Row
    With all hope of an appeal fading away, the fate of a condemned murderess takes a shocking turn in a breathtaking short story from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Housemaid! A thrilling novella from #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden! Death is coming for her… unless she finds the truth first. Talia Kemper is on death row for murdering...
    Paperback
    $2299
    Elsewhere:
    $2400
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Signed Copy
    On Sale
    19% off
    Dying Days
    Award-winning writer delivers a pulse-pounding espionage thriller. Missing soldiers, MI6 secrets and European partisans collide in a deadly game where the lines between lies and reality are fast disintegrating. In the dying days of the Second World War, a new conflict is about to ignite. May, 1945: After fighting to liberate Europe from the Nazis, Tito's Yugoslav Army and Allied...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    19% off
    New Release
    Fury In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 63)
    In the new crime thriller from the bestselling author, Lt. Eve Dallas journeys into the darkness where murder is born… NYSPD homicide detective Eve Dallas has seen a lot in her time but even she is shocked by the savagery of a beating which leaves a wealthy biotech executive dead in his home office. The victim’s corpse is so mangled...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    19% off
    New Release
    Tom Clancy Pressure Depth
    Jack Ryan Jr leads a team of divers in a race to beat the Chinese Navy to a weapon of terrible destructive power in the latest entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series. Jack Ryan Jr. is on Guam to work on a project for Hendley Associates. It's a perfectly ordinary insurance matter, but trouble finds the Ryans...
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Country Road Murders
    On Sale
    10% off
    New Release
    The Country Road Murders
    From the Sunday Times bestselling author comes a pulse-pounding thriller about justice, vengeance and the roads that lead us home. No one gets this big without amazing natural storytelling talent - which is what Jim has, in spades — LEE CHILD Cross Rivers is the kind of small town where everyone knows your name – and your secrets. Silas Tucker...
    Paperback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    15% off
    Every Lake
    Scary stories are fun... until your life becomes one. When Alice was fifteen, her father killed Mia Heywood in their lakefront cottage before vanishing into the trees. At least that's what the locals think happened. Over a decade later, Alice has lost her job as a journalist, she's going through an expensive divorce and she desperately needs to sell the...
    Paperback
    $2800
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.