[CedarBristol]

Ken Follett

I know many, including some here, who have loved Pillars of the Earth and its seqel World Without End. These were the books where he stepped out of cold war thrillers and into some more serious artistic territory, but his thrillers are also well worth your time.

1. Eye of the Needle – his first big hit in 1979. Absolutely the sexiest spy novel you will ever read. It’s a thriller, and nothing but a thriller, but the contrast between this and Day of the Jackal, another favorite of mine is stark. Jackal, like most by Forsyth, is all about how to pull off the assassination and how to try to foil it. The people on both sides of the story are only interesting in so far as they contribute to that. I have similar feelings for the characters in most Hitchcock movies. In the 39 Steps, Frenzy, or Family Plot, or Day of the Jackal, I am driven to turn pages or keep watching by a desire to see how it turns out that turns into a burning need. When I read a Ken Follet thriller I feel the same kind of need for the next piece of the story, but it’s much more personal because I care about the made-up people and what happens to them. He wrote ten novels under a fake name to get the skill down before getting the craft down to where he wanted his real name on one, at age 30.

2. The Third Twin – about a genetic scientist with a personal and professional interest in the question of whether our environment or our DNA determines who we are. I loved how Ken Follett handled this question and I think you probably will too. To me, this one borders on serious art as well, or maybe even crosses the line.

3. The Man From St. Petersberg – don’t read this one too close to the time when you read Eye of the Needle because they look superficially like the same story. They have a some elements in common, but it’s 1913 and there’s suffragettes and an all around really great tour of what was happening at that time intellectually and politically.

4. The Hammer of Eden – hippie terrorists trying to stop a Hydro power project. Brilliant!

5. Code to Zero – Follows some brilliant Americans from their time together in college in 1941 through heroic World War 2 service, to their midlife in the late 50’s. They are like cartoon heroes of that era, except for the fact that there are actual people who did all of the things these people did.

You really should just read them all. The guy is amazing!

Also, you can watch a streaming video lecture on the history of the thriller and what distinguishes it from other literary forms 

[JimWhitton]

You wrote: “When I read a Ken Follett thriller I feel the same kind of need for the next piece of the story, but it’s much more personal because I care about the made-up people and what happens to them.”

I agree. Follett is a master at making you care about his characters. He likes to plant some terrible fear in their past, or give them some dream they’ve wanted to fulfill their whole lives. When the character confronts his fear or realizes his wish, you go through all the emotions that he does.

Every one of Follett’s books is worth reading. Another great thriller is Triple, about an Isreali spy. One of my favorites is Night Over Water, which takes place at the beginning of WW2 on a huge, glamorous plane that lands on water. His historical thrillers like Pillars and the recent Century series are very well researched, and you get to learn a few things about history in an entertaining way.

Follett has been called a “champagne socialist”, and his wife is an MP in the Labour Party in Britain. But I’ve never really noticed his books being slanted to the left. He always focuses on the characters rather than the politics.        

[ZacharyKauble]

I concur with all that has been stated about Follett in this thread.  A Dangerous Fortune is another book of his worth noting.  It’s about late 19th century bankers in England, some of which are the protagonists if you can believe it.

[Author]

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