Fall of Giants (Century Trilogy, #1)

by Ken Follett

John Lee (Narrator)

A huge novel that follows five families through the world-shaking dramas of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the struggle for votes for women.

It is 1911. The Coronation Day of King George V. The Williams, a Welsh coal-mining family, is linked by romance and enmity to the Fitzherberts, aristocratic coal-mine owners. Lady Maud Fitzherbert falls in love with Walter von Ulrich, a spy at the German Embassy in London. Their destiny is entangled with that of an ambitious young aide to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and to two orphaned Russian brothers, whose plans to emigrate to America fall foul of war, conscription and revolution.

In a plot of unfolding drama and intriguing complexity, FALL OF GIANTS moves seamlessly from Washington to St Petersburg, from the dirt and danger of a coal mine to the glittering chandeliers of a palace, from the corridors of power to the bedrooms of the mighty.

• ISBN10: 1616570806
• ISBN13: 9781616570804
• Publish Date: 28 September 2010
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Random House
• Duration: 30 hours and 30 minutes
• Language: English

Reviews

[flybymoonlight]

When I first picked up this book, I was a bit overwhelmed by the page length. I thought it would get dry and boring, as I'm not the biggest history fan. I was wrong. This book was highly entertaining. I definitely learned a few new things about WWI history. Would definitely recommend.

[Terri M. LeBlanc]

This is the 3rd Follett novel I've read. Previously I had tackled The Pillars of the Earth, which I really enjoyed, and World Without End, which was a re-hash of The Pillars of the Earth. Knowing little about WWI, I found the book to be a bit dry. In the last 100 pages or so, I couldn't wait for the war to wrap up so the character's storylines would be tied up. The ending was satisfying and open-ended enough (political turmoil in Germany, women serving in Parliament in Britain) that it will be intriguing to see where during WWII, Follett picks up with Book #2.

[dpfaef]

This book went on and on and on. A epic... but he has lost something from his first book The Pillars of the Earth that book was exceptional - Fall of Giants just felt too long.