The Wind of the Khazars

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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 843.914 EAN: 9781592641581 ISBN: 159264158X Label: Toby Press Manufacturer: Toby Press Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 316 Publication Date: 2006-01 Publisher: Toby Press Studio: Toby Press
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Editorial Reviews: In the 10th century the Khazar kingdom grew and flourished, and in one of the oddest choices ever made, converted to Judaism. A thousand years later, when the writer Marc Sofer is given an ancient Khazarian coin by a mysterious visitor, he is drawn into investigating the fascinating enigma of the Khazars. Why did these steppe warriors decide to become Jews? And what is the connection between this ancient, vanished people, and the terrorist group calling themselves the New Khazars, who have begun attacking oil plants on the Caspian sea?
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: Interesting historic fiction Comment: Being possibly descended from Khazarian royalty, I was expecting more history than fiction but it was entertaining. Customer Rating: Summary: More a disappointment than anything else... Comment: I read this book in French when it was first published in France. As somebody much interested in Khazar history I was disappointed as it seemed rather superficial so as to the historical content and the plot was not fascinating either when I expected the author to have written a better fiction book based on Khazar history when the latter is treated in some very few but good works... Moreover there is not even, at least in the French edition, the short bibliography Marek Halter should have included out of mere fairness: The one of the works whithout which he could not have written his own book! Anybody really interested in Khazar history should better read The Thirteenth Tribe and The Jews of Khazaria... [...] Customer Rating: Summary: A fascinating historical novel. Comment: Wind of the Khazars awakened an old interest in the subject. Many years ago I read Arthur Koestler's The 13th Tribe, an historian's investigation of these "Jewish" warriors. I think Koestler's book is a work anyone interested in Khazaria should find a fascinating study. The Wind of the Khazars is a fun book to read; held my interest until 2:30 a.m. until I could finish it. I seldom read novels of any kind, but my fascination with the subject matter tempted me to get the book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I find the one criticism of the sexual encounter rather strange. I thought the author handled it very well, and certainly not smut, as another critique suggested. Ill give it 4 stars for plot development and 5 for overall enjoyment to read. Customer Rating: Summary: Read it, if you are desperate for any fiction about the Khazars Comment: Oh dear. What a disappointing book. It gets 3 stars for dealing with the neglected and fascinating topic of the Khazars. It would get 2 stars if it was rated merely as a thriller. Even allowing for loss in translation (from French) the prose is leaden. Characterization fails on most levels. The main protagonist, the author Sofer, is so obviously Mr. Halter himself that one wonders that he is so frank about his sexual proclivities, which do not rise much above the level of a fantasizing teenager. The story about the ancient Khazars has a fairy tale quality, while attempting to be serious historical fiction. The parallel modern story is weak, with elementary errors about the oil industry in the Caspian region. Still, given that the main competition in Khazar historical fiction is the unreadable "Dictionary of the Khazars" this is necessary if labored reading for hard core Khazar fans. Customer Rating: Summary: Book review Comment: This book arrived in great shape and very quickly. I'd certainly buy from this seller again. More Reviews