The Invaders

Author: Conn Iggulden

"The Invaders" is a story that began with a single hungry family in the plains of Mongolia, and ended with the Khan's rule over an empire larger than those of Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar combined. It is perhaps the greatest rags-to-riches story in history. It is a story of Genghis Khan's descendants vying for the throne of the Khan's empire, from the enthronement of Güyük, son of Ögedei, as Khan, to the punitive campaign of his cousin Batu, culminating in Möngke's ascent to the throne. Möngke acted like a father to his brothers Kublai, Hulagu, and Ariq Böke, sharing power and caring for them, and like a grandfather when he followed in Genghis Khan's footsteps. But fate had its say concerning the Mongol nation; Möngke was killed, and the struggle for the throne resumed. We read a story unparalleled in history, in which Genghis Khan, his sons, and his grandsons sought to change the world and indeed changed it, but no one could change history forever. This sentence, spoken by one of Genghis Khan's descendants to his brother, summarizes the Mongol Khans' view of power: "I was the rightful owner, and now the right belongs to the strong and the victorious." In this novel, every time we think the rightful owner possesses it, we will see that it will pass to the stronger person after him, and he will become the rightful owner.