King Solomon's Mines - H.R. Haggard

by H. Rider Haggard

Overview

Allan Quatermain is an English elephant hunter and explorer. He agrees to help Sir Henry Curtis and John Good, two other Englishmen, look for the legend of King Solomon's diamond mines. Using Curtis's motivation to find his long lost brother, Quatermain's hope that the diamonds will provide for his son to become successful, and the combined eagerness to find out whether the mines are fact or fiction, they set off. In Africa, they pick up Kukuanu slaves, including the hunter Umbopa, who Quatermain had previously encountered. Using clues from a deceased explorer that tried to find the diamond mines before, Jose del Silvestra, the group finds landmarks to help them guide their way to the mines. Along the way, they hunt animals, but a follower dies during an encounter with an elephant. Once they reach the main landmark and find sources of freshwater from an oasis, the group bring their hopes up. They find Suleiman's Berg, and upon climbing one of its mountains, Sheba's Breasts, they enter a cave and find the corpse of Jose del Silvestra, looting his body for more clues, along with burying their dead comrade with del Silvestra. Quatermain and his party encounter Kukuanu natives who threaten to kill them, but are saved when Good displays his talents. Quatermain, now acting like a god, demands to be brought up before the leader. In moments, they encounter the evil king Twala and his witch Gagool. Quatermain uses his skin color and his stache of English guns to prove that he is indeed a god among the kukuanu. Gagool, while trying to single out potential threats, discovers that Umbopa is the rightful king of the kukuanu, Ignosi, who's father Twala and Gagool overthrew in order to gain absolute power over the country. Umbopa, now Ignosi, reveals his snake tattoo to the Kukuanu believers who agree to help him defeat Twala and Gagool once and for all. After whiping out all of Twala's men, he is the only one remaining. Calling Sir Henry Curtis a coward forces Curtis to challenge him to a one versus one duel, ending in the beheading of Twala. With Ignosi restored as the rightful king, he allows Gagool to stay alive to bring Quatermain, Curtis, and Good to the diamond mines. Showing them the secret cave passage, she cunningly sneaks behind them as she watches them hysterically laugh as they play with the horde of diamonds. Gagool traps them inside the mines, while dying herself. Running out of food and water, the Englishmen abandon all hope of surviving. Quatermain is the only one with diamonds stuck in his clothes head to toe. Curtis and Good exclaim that the sight of diamonds make them sick, because their greed was what brought them their downfall. However, using survival skills, the men find an escape route. After bidding farewell to Ignosi, Quatermain and his men leave back for England. However, on their way back, they enter a jungle and discover a secluded and isolated hut. Inside, they finally find Curtis's long lost brother. With all their goals reached, the men return to England to live wealthy lives, fulfilling the quote "Alls well that ends well".

Product Details

BN ID:	2940148618652
Publisher:	Romeo Publications
Publication date:	10/03/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	561 KB

About the Author

Sir Henry Rider Haggard was an English writer of adventure novels set in exotic locations, predominantly Africa, and the creator of the Lost World literary genre. His stories, situated at the lighter end of the scale of Victorian literature, continue to be popular and influential. He was also involved in agricultural reform and improvement in the British Empire.

His breakout novel was King Solomon's Mines (1885), which was to be the first in a series telling of the multitudinous adventures of its protagonist, Allan Quatermain.

Haggard was made a Knight Bachelor in 1912 and a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1919. He stood unsuccessfully for Parliament as a Conservative candidate for the Eastern division of Norfolk in 1895. The locality of Rider, British Columbia, was named in his memory.