I just finished reading The Man From St. Petersburg by Ken Follett. It is yet another excellent novel by him. This one is set in the pre-WWI era. Actually it ends right about the time that WWI is getting started. From the back cover:
His name was Feliks. He came to London to commit a murder that would change history. He had many weapons at his command, but the most dangerous were the love of a beautiful young woman longing for the end of innocense, and the passion of a high-born lady demanding satisfaction at any price. Against him were ranged the whole of the English police, a brilliant and powerful lord, and the young Winston Churchill himsellf. These odds would ahve stopped any man in the world except the man from St. Petersburg.
As is typical for Follet, the female charaters are extremely “strong.” This book once again shows why Follet is one of my favorite authors. This is the 9th book of his I've read and every one of them has completely capitvated me, and held me to the very end. In fact more than that. They keep me up at night, flipping pages instead of sleeping. His books do not get boring, and seldom can you truly guess what is going to happen next. Follet is a true treasure in the fiction world, and I can't wait to pick up another of his novels soon.
FYI: The Ken Follet books I've read are:
- The Man From St. Petersburg
- Jackdaws
- Triple
- A Place Called Freedom
- The Hammer of Eden
- Code to Zero
- The Third Twin
- Pillars of the Earth
- Eye of the Needle
If you've not read any of these books, I reccomend any of them. Pillars of the Earth is probably my favorite of these, but its a very close call.
Next up: The first book of Piers Anthony's The Apprentice Adept Series, Split Infinity.