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What Members Thought
Having read and enjoyed Pillars of the Earth, I was anxious to read this book about the First World War and its aftermath. Mr. Follett does not disappoint. This book follows five families as they live through some of the most dramatic years of the 20th century. Mr. Follett has created some characters who articulately express the attitudes that were prevalent historically. Sure some characters arrive in places that seem contrived but isn't that what historical fiction seems to do? More importantl
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I enjoyed how I could follow several characters from different nations through the start to aftermath of the Great War. All the characters had flaws. All made bad decisions. All had redeeming qualities...some where just more redeemed than others. I found the characters very true to life and their fictional lives blended well into actual history.
Ken Follett is a masterful storyteller. His characters are authentic, vivid, and engaging. He also knows his history. This multi-family, multi-continent drama of World War I is outstanding, and easily surpassed my previous Follett favorite, The Pillars of the Earth, to become my #1 Ken Follett book. The type of book you can lose yourself in, I listened to the audiobook (all 14 hours of it!) over a single weekend. I can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.
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I enjoyed this, although not as much as "The Pillars of the Earth" and "World Without End". As usual, interesting characters, and I'm very interested in World War I, so the tie in to that kept me interested. Can't wait for the next two in the trilogy. It seems pretty clear from the way Follett ended the book that the next one will center around World War II, so I'm sure I'll enjoy that as well.
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Oct 21, 2010
Kelly
marked it as to-read
Sep 19, 2011
Stephanie Cook
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Mar 30, 2014
Emily
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Dec 31, 2016
Aileen Finney
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Mar 26, 2017
Nicole
marked it as historical-fiction
Mar 22, 2018
Tricia
marked it as to-read
Jul 06, 2020
Michelle
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