Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Wait a minute, another new Follett? There was Kingsbridge IV just a year ago! What happened to the usual three-year intervals? Yes, the 72-year-old has come out with another new novel, and it's quite thick again (more than 800 pages). And it's a typical Follett in many ways. But in many ways, just not. And that's a good thing here. The obvious, of course, is that it's not a historical novel, the first since "White Out" 16 years ago (there were actually six historical books in between). "Never" is set now, with the reality somewhat altered. A woman (a moderate Republican) rules in the USA and there is not a single real character in the whole book. Even cities were invented, and it took me quite a while to realize that even a sunk aircraft carrier is very realistic, yet invented. But everything in the book sounds very real and not far fetched. Frighteningly real. What is it about? Follett has asked himself whether it is possible today to have a war that no one actually wants. Like the First World War. While researching "Fall of Giants", he kept asking himself if it could happen today. He chose the USA and China as opponents (the Europeans are practically not mentioned, and the Russians are somewhere in a subordinate sentence). And the scenario he develops sounds believable. It starts with an almost insignificant incident (people die, but that would only be a minor agency news story today), and then it spirals up. And higher and higher. It's a bit like Breaking Bad, where you also wonder how far Walter White could have gone, where the red line was actually crossed. Everything is so frighteningly logical. Wait, "sunk aircraft carrier"? So, it's a war novel? Ken Follett goes Tom Clancy? No, not at all. Yes, military operations occur, but that's backdrop. The main plot is clearly politics. It's a diplomatic thriller. Conference halls instead of battlefields. Boring? Not at all. And you don't have to have a degree in politics to follow the plot (in other words, my degree in politics doesn't do me any good even here). It's very much a Ken Follett again, because he thinks of his readers. The plot is complex, but not complicated; branching, but not confusing. There are many Chinese protagonists, and the names are more unusual for us, of course, as if they were called John or James. But still, it's actually always clear who it's about without having to look it up. I find the frame story of the president and her husband unnecessary, but so what. What is very welcome, on the other hand, is that Follett is not Follett this time, as far as the characters are concerned. There was always a scumbag as the great antagonist of the impeccable hero. Here, the Americans seem more sympathetic than the Chinese (sure, democracy versus communism, I would know which side to choose). But the actions of the Chinese are also understandable and Follett is not one-dimensional here. It's much more the contest between moderates and reformers on one side and hardliners and warmongers on the other. It reminded me a lot of "Fall of Giants": the Chinese protagonist and his stubborn father are the exact image of the German count and his father in the novel about the outbreak of the First World War. The end of the book surprised me. This is also unusual for Follett. Namely, at the end...oh, read it for yourself. It's fun. (Sorry for my English, not a native speaker, German.)