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Series

Allan Quatermain

The Allan Quatermain series follows H. Rider Haggard’s hunter, trader and expedition leader across southern, eastern and central Africa. King Solomon’s Mines and Allan Quatermain describe the end of his career, while the later books fill in his youth, marriage, involvement in Zulu and Boer history, journeys to hidden kingdoms and encounters with Ayesha, Zikali and Umslopogaas. The publication sequence therefore does not represent a continuous fictional chronology.

Across the series Haggard combines Victorian adventure, colonial frontier fiction, lost-world fantasy and occasional historical reconstruction. Marie, Child of Storm and Finished form a Zulu sub-trilogy; The Ancient Allan shifts into Achaemenid-ruled Egypt through reincarnation; and Allan and the Ice Gods imagines an Ice Age past. The books also preserve the racial and imperial assumptions of their publication period, which are integral to understanding their historical context.

Reading order

Books in this series (14 books)

King Solomon’s Mines cover

1. King Solomon’s Mines

H. Rider Haggard

4.3(796)

Allan Quatermain agrees to guide Sir Henry Curtis and Captain Good into the southern African interior in search of Curtis’s missing brother. Their route crosses desert and mountain before reaching the isolated kingdom of Kukuanaland, where a disputed succession and the promise of Solomon’s legendary diamond…

Allan Quatermain cover

2. Allan Quatermain

H. Rider Haggard

After the death of his only son, Allan Quatermain leaves settled life and joins Sir Henry Curtis, Captain Good and the Zulu warrior Umslopogaas on an expedition into the African interior. An underground river carries the party into the isolated kingdom of Zu-Vendis, where the rival…

Allan’s Wife cover

3. Allan’s Wife

H. Rider Haggard

Allan Quatermain recalls his childhood acquaintance with Stella Carson, their separation after both families move to southern Africa, and their unexpected reunion when Stella saves his life. Their marriage is shadowed by Hendrika, a young woman raised among baboons whose fierce devotion to Stella turns to…

Maiwa’s Revenge cover

4. Maiwa’s Revenge

H. Rider Haggard

During an elephant-hunting journey, Allan Quatermain encounters Maiwa, a woman seeking vengeance against the ruler who murdered her child and continues to hold an English hunter captive. Allan joins her supporters, crosses difficult country and helps organise an assault on the fortified settlement where Maiwa’s enemies…

Marie cover

5. Marie

H. Rider Haggard

Young Allan Quatermain loves Marie Marais, but their relationship is obstructed by family prejudice, a rival suitor and the dangers faced by Boer communities moving into the interior. The story carries Allan through the Great Trek and into direct contact with Dingane’s court and the violence…

Child of Storm cover

6. Child of Storm

H. Rider Haggard

Allan Quatermain becomes involved in the ambitions of Saduko and the destructive charisma of Mameena, whose relationships draw warriors and royal factions into conflict. Zikali encourages the rivalries that will weaken the Zulu nation, while Allan observes a society divided by love, status and succession. The…

The Holy Flower cover

7. The Holy Flower

H. Rider Haggard

Brother John tells Allan Quatermain of an enormous orchid guarded by the remote Pongo people. An English collector finances an expedition to obtain the plant, but the search soon becomes entangled with captivity, sacrifice and the recovery of a woman whom Brother John has sought for…

The Ivory Child cover

8. The Ivory Child

H. Rider Haggard

Priests of the White Kendah seek Allan Quatermain’s help against the Black Kendah and their elephant-god Jana. When Lady Ragnall is drawn into the Kendah conflict, Allan travels with Lord Ragnall and Hans to recover her, destroy the supposedly invulnerable elephant and prevent the rival people…

Finished cover

9. Finished

H. Rider Haggard

Years after the events of Child of Storm, Allan Quatermain returns to Zululand as relations between Cetshwayo’s kingdom and British authority move toward war. Zikali’s designs, old loyalties and the decisions of colonial officials converge in a campaign that brings destruction to the Zulu political order.…

The Ancient Allan cover

10. The Ancient Allan

H. Rider Haggard

Allan Quatermain and Lady Ragnall inhale the visionary drug taduki and experience what may be memories of former lives. Allan becomes Shabaka, an Egyptian noble and hunter serving a country subordinated to the Achaemenid Great King, while Lady Ragnall appears as Amada, a priestess of Isis…

She and Allan cover

11. She and Allan

H. Rider Haggard

Seeking knowledge of the dead, Allan Quatermain follows the counsel of the Zulu seer Zikali and travels north with the warrior Umslopogaas. The journey leads them to the ruined city of Kôr and to Ayesha, the immortal ruler known as She, who enlists the newcomers in…

Heu-Heu cover

12. Heu-Heu

H. Rider Haggard

Zikali sends Allan Quatermain and Hans to investigate a hidden land associated with Heu-Heu, a monstrous ape-like being worshipped and feared by the people around a volcanic lake. The quest for a visionary plant and rumours of ivory and diamonds draw them into a society ruled…

The Treasure of the Lake cover

13. The Treasure of the Lake

H. Rider Haggard

Travelling through East Africa with Hans, Allan Quatermain meets Kaneke, the formidable ruler of an isolated village, and becomes involved in the rescue of the Englishman John Taurus Arkle. Their route leads to Lake Mone, where an oracle known as the Shadow or Treasure of the…

Allan and the Ice Gods cover

14. Allan and the Ice Gods

H. Rider Haggard

Under the influence of taduki, Allan Quatermain experiences the life of Wi, a hunter living in a prehistoric community threatened by climate, hunger, rival groups and the advance of ice. Wi’s struggle to protect his people and establish new ways of living turns the adventure away…