Edge of Eternity: Ken Follett (The Century Trilogy, 3)

Product Information

Despite their bravado all over the world, both countries are also on the brink of massive civil unrest internally. He was a slim, dark-haired man of forty, with a livid scar across his forehead where a shard of flying shrapnel had struck him while he was defending the Seelow Heights in the last days of the war. Sadly, though it gets off to a good start, Edge of Eternity fizzles fast, becoming repetitive and predictable. Dewar plays an important role in Nixon's illegal surveillance and espionage tactics, culminating in the 1972 burglary of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex.

But, what really makes the novel are the great characters he has created and their descendants, who help bring together all of the seminal historical events. You’ll cheer as the terrified, disbelieving citizens of East Berlin watch the fall of the much hated Berlin wall. Edge of Eternity is the sweeping, passionate conclusion to Ken Follett’s extraordinary historical epic, The Century Trilogy. One of my favorite things about this book is the presence of strong characters who do not shy away from asserting their point of view. Characters in East Berlin and Moscow work (under five different Soviet leaders), subtly at first and then more overtly, to bring about the start of the fall of Communism.

The fake history is actually dangerous because some readers, especially younger ones who did not live through these events might believe the nonsense that Follett spews out, particularly if they had read the real history he deals with in the first two books of the series. So yes, you do have to read it if you've read the other two books, but don't expect to enjoy it as much.

Every incident was drawn from what could have been a pleasant story into a long, over-detailed story. She remembered their wedding day, the honeymoon, and their year of marriage, seeing it all now as a play in which Hans had been performing. Rebecca and every other teacher in the school knew that Bernd himself should have got the job, if ability had been what counted; but Bernd was ruled out because he would not join the Socialist Unity Party, the SED—the Communist Party in all but name.The book is also muddied with too many explicit sex scenes which just felt in questionable taste and crass. Follett was equal in his treatment of both types as far as sexuality, writing soap opera scenes of infidelity for all, including President John Kennedy and the communists. What about 1997 – New Labour, Diana’s death – it could all have linked in with Lloyd’s labour involvement, Jasper’s links with journalism – the hounding of Diana by the press etc… a way of showing that although the class boundaries are more fluid now, there is still a fascination with royalty and the privileged. Her mother had been a city councilor, also for the Social Democrats, during East Berlin’s brief postwar period of democracy. Then his eyes widened in shock as he accepted the reality of what he was seeing, and his mouth opened a fraction.

Its sequels, World Without End and A Column of Fire , proved equally popular, and the Kingsbridge series has sold 38 million copies worldwide.Follett's mostly plausible characters are involved in real events, interacting with real world leaders; there are unmistakable characters resembling Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, 'Hanoi' Jane Fonda and The Beatles. Lili Franck, Rebecca and Walli's youngest sister who protests the Communist government of East Germany by singing subversive songs. When Walli escapes East Berlin, he leaves behind Karolin, his pregnant girlfriend who goes to live with Walli's parents. It is a substantial and compelling read covering more than fifty years of recent history offering a detailed and authentic account of world events as they could have been seen by those in positions near those in power.