Ken Follett’s new trilogy focuses on the lives of various
interconnected families during the 20th Century. This volume takes
place during the early decades of that time frame. The major powers are
reshaped throughout the novel, and certain giants fall while others rise
through war and revolution. These political and larger than life events
contrast with the more simple yet important minutiae concerning the main cast.
We are presented with a Welsh coal miner and his sister, an English earl and
his sister, a German diplomat, two Russian brothers, one an easy-goer, the
other a hard worker, and an ambitious American aide to President Wilson.
Their lives are coupled through love and hate, alliance and distrust,
etc. Their interactions with real historical figures such as Churchill and
Lenin bring readers neck-to-neck with history and how the inevitable has
changed lives for the better and for the worst. These people cross paths
regularly and their actions have consequences, some world-changing, others insignificant.
The giants, the crowned heads, and their minions carry out their own machinations
watched intently by the common folk. Although they are described to an extent
that makes them more than simple portraits from a dusty book of times past,
they aren’t given any real personalities except a small few. This somewhat
marginalizes the power and influence they held, but nonetheless it’s just
enough to move the plot along.
For instance, some chapters just cover a day, while others
can cover a span of months and one wouldn’t notice. Follett manages to work out
the timeline, blot out most inconsistencies and tell his story in a meaningful
way. The book pulls readers in to its highly realistic yet fictional drama
peppered with tragedy and romance and action. The conversations are genuine and
the events defined are rich. Follett’s experience and maturity in writing are
displayed here and it is a must-read for his fans.
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