AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: KEN FOLLETT

I just finished reading Ken Follett's newest book Winter of the World, and I loved it!  I am really enjoying his Century Trilogy, and I can't wait to see what he does for the final book in the series.  Now, I have to find something else to read while I wait. 

The Century Trilogy spans the Twentieth century, and is seen through the eyes of five different families (American, English, German, Russian, and Welsh).  The first book, Fall of Giants, covered World War I and the Russian Revolution.  Winter of the World picks up where Fall of Giants ends, and takes the reader through the Spanish Civil War and World War II.  The third novel is set to be published in 2014 and will cover the Cold War and the end of the century.

Luckily for me, Follett has written many books that I have not yet read.  Here is a list of all of his works:

Century Trilogy:
1. Fall of Giants
2. Winter of the World

Whiteout
Hornet Flight
Jackdaws
Code to Zero
The Hammer of Eden
The Third Twin
A Place Called Freedom
A Dangerous Fortune
Night Over Water
The Pillars of the Earth
World Without End
Lie Down with Lions
On Wings of Eagles
The Man from St. Petersburg
The Key to Rebecca
Triple
Eye of the Needle
Paper Money
The Modigliani Scandal


Read everything by Ken Follett?  Or, looking for something similar to his works?  Check out some of these titles:

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian follows a Prussian woman and her child as they flee away from the approaching Russian army during World War II.  On their way, they form an alliance with a Jewish man escaping from the concentration camps.

The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines is the story of a black woman who started life as a slave and lived to take part in the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s.

The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje tells the story of four intersected lives in an Italian village at the end of World War II.  Three different people are haunted by the English patient, a nameless and injured man who rests in an upstairs room.

The Final Solution by Michael Chabon is a mystery that takes place in the English countryside during World War II.  The reader follows a detective on what will become his final case.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a story that takes the reader from Afghanistan in the final days of the monarchy to the present day.  It is a story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father's servant.  A story of betrayal, redemption, family relationships.

The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb tells the story of a family moving to Connecticut after surviving the Columbine school shootings.  Caelum and Maureen discover family artifacts dating back five generations as well as unexpected truths about the past.

The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough is a tale of dreams, struggles, passions, and love in the Australian Outback.  The novel follows three generations of Clearys as they deal with bitterness, frailty, and secrets.

Mission to Paris by Alan Furst: Upon arriving in Paris, Frederic Stahl becomes entangled in the region's shifting politics when he discovers that his newest film is tied to the fate of fascists, German Nazis, and Hollywood publicists.

Enigma by Robert Harris: At the center of Britain's most sacred World War II secret, breaking the Germans' codes, lays a spy who could be tipping off the enemy.

In Night of the Fox by Jack Higgins, Colonel Hugh Kelso goes down in the English Channel while on a secret mission before D-Day.  He washes ashore in German-occupied territory, and panic spreads through the Allied forces as Kelso knows the time and place of the invasion.  He must be rescued...or silenced.

Up in Honey's Room by Elmore Leonard tells the story of Walter Schoen, born in Germany, but now living in Detroit.  He looks just like Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS and the Gestapo, and they even have the same birthday.  Honey Deal, Walter's wife, does not know that Walter is a part of a spy ring that gives shelter to escaped German prisoners of war...

The Jester by James Patterson: When Hugh returns from the Crusades, he finds that his wife has been taken by relic-seeking knights.  He must pose as a court jester in order to enter the castle in which his wife is being held prisoner.

The Ravenscar Dynasty by Barbara Taylor Bradford tells the story of a young man who fights his cousin for control of a business empire that was taken from his branch of the family years earlier.

The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell is a work of fiction that brings together suspense and scholarship, art and treachery.  This novel takes you from the streets of 15th century Rome to the realm of the Ivy League.  It is a tour of history that builds up to an almost unbearable suspense.

Garden of Beasts by Jeffrey Deaver follows Paul Schuman, a professional hit man, who is arrested by the U.S. government.  He is told that he can go to prison, or he can assassinate the man in control of Hitler's rearmament.  The story leads to an end filled with surprises.



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