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Raiders from the North by Alex Rutherford


Publication Date: January 1st 2009
Genre: Historical Fiction
My Goodreads Rating: 4/5
Source: Own Copy

Hello everyone! Today, I'm going to be reviewing "Raiders from the North" by Alex Rutherford. It is the first book in her "Empire of the Moghul" series, and revolves around the life of the first Mughal emperor, Babur.

 Babur became king of Ferghana at the young age of 12, following the death of his father. From the moment of his coronation till his last few breaths, Babur's life was one of danger, ambition, courage and war. He lost control of his lands several times, but came back to build an empire in India ( that was previously known as Hindustan).
 The book takes us through the long journeys that Babur undertook as a child, and shows us his growth from a King to an Emperor, and from a warrior to a leader.

 Rutherford tells her tale as a narrative from the third person point-of-view, and creates fictional characters along the way. Most of the events have basis in real life, but some have been skipped or merged together to create a more legible novel. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, and have now finished the second novel as well.
 I didn't quite think that I'd enjoy the book, but I loved it, and am surprised that I want to continue with the series. This book was over 400 pages, and therefore counts for my Big Book Challenge as well. I know that this review was quite short, but I wanted to let you know about the book without spoiling it for you. The book does involve a lot of war and expansion of territory, and telling you about any one could ruin the whole book for you.
 I'd recommend all of you to try out this book- trust me, you will be surprised!

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