The Sand Sea
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
"An astounding epic novel of J.R.R. Tolkien proportions!"
— Steven Pressfield, Bestselling author of Gates of Fire and The War of Art
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Raiders of the Lost Ark playing A Game of Thrones
The Sand Sea takes place on an alternative Earth roiled by war and conquest that mirrors our own Gilded Age. The treasure that ignites greed and folly in this parallel world is not petroleum, but beserite—a mineral of immeasurable value.
Captivated by an ancient prophecy and the call of adventure, inexperienced nobleman and scholar Peter Harmon (think of a young Winston Churchill-like naif) joins an expedition to stake his nation’s claim to a global empire.
Harmon’s destination is a vast and inhospitable desert halfway around the world, dominated by the iron-fisted Grand Vizer Jemojeen Jongdar. A tyrant on a mission to secure the ancient and supernatural Staff of the Ram, the Lion, and the Serpent, Jongdar knows the truth that others can only imagine: The one who controls the staff will possess the power to rule the world.
Before he can seize his destiny, Jongdar must find and destroy the one person capable of thwarting his ambition, the rightful heir to the Sand Sea realm, an innocent woman named Selena Savanar.
Can the brave and indomitable Selena accept her true destiny and rally her people in the eye of a gathering storm? To do so will require her to outwit the man who burned her father alive and left her an orphan and beggar a lifetime ago. Or will Peter Harmon and the cadre of opportunists he rides with conquer the divided empire?
With the mythic structure of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy in a world as rich and real as George R.R. Martin’s Westeros, The Sand Sea is an immersive experience made to order for epic fantasy fans and anyone who enjoys grand-scale historical fiction.
Customer Reviews
Absolutely Superb!
A unique, richly-layered page-turner of war, magic, political strategy, and grand adventure! The characters are all three-dimensional...very Tolkienesque.
This has blockbuster streaming series written all over it!
I can’t imagine the amount of tireless work and tender care it must’ve taken to bring this completely original world to life.
Bravo, Mr. McClellan!
Epic
Full disclosure: Mike is a close, personal friend. I’ve watched him give birth to this epic novel from close range. Now that I’ve completed my reading of the final version, I am awestruck. It’s a monumental achievement. You may be tempted to think stereotype – East vs. West, Christianity vs. Islam, Haves vs Have-nots. Aristocrats vs. Nomads. Gunpowder vs. Bow and Arrow. But it’s much more. Think Archetype. From Anglia to the Hahst, to the Secrets of Hom Hommuram, the House of Harmon, the Caldwells, the Huntingtons, Abu Akhsa, Jemojeen, and the failing Grand Viser of the Qhaliffa. From Parliament to desert tents. The Sand Sea has it all: money, sex, and power. Mike’s meticulous attention to detail: battle strategy, intrigue, clashing egos (many of them oversized), the fierce competition for a place in the tribal hierarchies, loves gained and lost, heart-stopping stories of survival, epic victories, and shattering defeats. Then politics and religion, superstition and magic, heretics and rebels. Loyalty and mutiny. All a product of Mike’s, boundless, oceanic imagination. I’m already counting the days until the sequel will be released.
Captivating!
I kept turning the page after each chapter. It may seem slow, but builds fast with all the required plots to excite readers. A good first!