Status
Available
Collection
Publication
Signet (1983), 342 pages
Description
Fiction. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:"Ken Follett has done it once more . . . goes down with the ease and impact of a well-prepared martini." �??New York Times Book Review His name was Feliks. He came to London to commit a murder that would change history. A master manipulator, he had many weapons at his command, but against him were ranged the whole of the English police, a brilliant and powerful lord, and the young Winston Churchill himself. These odds would have stopped any man in the world�??except the man from St. Peter
User reviews
LibraryThing member jeffome
So, my busy life seems to have kept me from reviewing books as soon as i have finished them, but i am still going to go back a few months and share whatever thoughts i have still retained since completing 10 different books. I begin with this Follett piece. I was convinced i had read this in the
Show More
80s while on a European excursion, but now i doubt it. This was completely different than what i expected it to be, and it was a little odd in the way it was put together. I sort of enjoyed it, but not like some of his other gripping thrillers. It always felt like i was never going to get through it. An OK effort, and certainly a startling unexpected end which was somewhat redeeming. Certainly not his best. Show Less
LibraryThing member antiquary
I have only just stated this but like it so far. The background is frankly incredible -- in My, 1914, Britain's Liberal government, expecting to be at war with Germany in alliance with France but unsure of Russian support (?! what price the Entente Cordiale?) is hoping to negotiate a secret treaty
Show More
with a Russian emissary, Prince Orlov. Orlov is the nephew is the Russian-born wife of the Earl of Walden, a staunch Tory aristocrat who is persuaded by WInston Churchill (then the Liberal First Lord of the Admiralty) to represent Britain in the negotiations --at the insistence of the Czar himself. Meanwhile, a Russian anarchist assassin who, in his student days, was the countess's lover, has taken the assignment of killing Orlov and disrupting the negotiations as a prelude to revolution. The main plot is fine, but there is a very silly subplot involving a couple of 18 year old debutantes of the earl's family who are so ignorant of the facts of life that when they steal a medical text and a pornographic book they still have no idea how sex actually works. That I flatly refuse to believe. Reading (for instance) Margot Asquith's memoirs I certainly do not gt the impression young female aristocrats were that naive. Show Less
LibraryThing member SLuce
Read on trip to India and Singapore. Very good airplane read.
LibraryThing member Neilsantos
More Follett, this one was a little more low-key. I learned the difference between a coachman and a footman. Every time I read about the villian, I pictured my old Don in a top hat and frock coat, with a round black bomb shouting "Down with the Czar!" I'll read more of his, but I may start at the
Show More
most recent work, and work backwards. Show Less
LibraryThing member richardgarside
Good fast moving fiction with a deal of historical characters and detail
LibraryThing member christinejoseph
Earl of Walden, Russian wife Lydia
Assassin Feliks - daughter Charlotte
WWI intrigue @ British + Russian Treaty
His name was Feliks. He came to London to commit a murder that would change history. A master manipulator, ha had many weapons at his command, but against him were ranged the whole of the
Assassin Feliks - daughter Charlotte
WWI intrigue @ British + Russian Treaty
His name was Feliks. He came to London to commit a murder that would change history. A master manipulator, ha had many weapons at his command, but against him were ranged the whole of the
Show More
English police, a brilliant and powerful lord, and the young Winston Churchill himself. These odds would have stopped any man in the world-except the man from St. Petersburg... Show Less
LibraryThing member skraft001
A very well written book by a master storyteller. There were a number of characters, but each one was very well developed. An excellent historical fiction.
LibraryThing member Carmenere
This was my first Follett and I was certainly impressed. He weaves an interesting story related to events taking place in England, France, Germany and Russia in 1914 and interjects another story line concerning a respected, aristocratic family who has based their life together on lies, secrets and
Show More
deception. The truth comes out in a fiery conclusion which will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Show Less
LibraryThing member tmph
Not great writing, overall plot, or characters, but eminently readable. I stayed with it all because of the depiction of the anarchist. I was amazed that a pop writer and novel would be, if not necessarily sympathetic, at least fully descriptive of reasoning and thoughts of the anarchist. Good for
Show More
Follett! Show Less
LibraryThing member hazysaffron
Another Ken Follett masterpiece. I found myself routing for Feliks even though he was the bad guy. Poor tortured Lydia was so uncertain of herself and her loyalties to the point where she was taking way too much laudanum. Charlotte was trapped between two worlds realizing all the while that beyond
I loved this book.
Show More
her small world their was a real world to be had.I loved this book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member JanEPat
Fun, fast paced story. Ken Follett early works are his best, in my opinion. THe later books are longer with less tension.
LibraryThing member ElizabethCromb
Reread late 2021. Follett boos are always a good read regardless of the theme.
LibraryThing member jtsolakos
Historical fiction at its finest. Do you root for the assassin or not? Of course not, but what a conundrum while reading this novel. All the characters are well written, time frame well researched. Just a great book you will not want to put down once you start reading.
LibraryThing member shirfire218
This is the second Ken Follett book I have read and I did not care for the writing in either book. This is a story about a privileged, upper class English family and a tangled web of deceit, from the past to the present; which culminates in a fatal encounter with the protagonist, a Russian
Lydia's family is part of the Russian nobility. As a young woman she has a wild streak, falling in love with an anarchist, Feliks. Her maid tells her father and her father has Feliks arrested. He then tells Lydia she will marry a man from the British aristocracy who has just asked for her hand. If she does so, he will have Feliks freed from prison (and being tortured). Lydia immediately complies and is whisked off to England where she begins her life as wife of a Lord. We meet up with the family during a time of high political drama and turmoil. Lord and Lady Walden have a high spirited 18 year old daughter, Charlotte who is also very beautiful and just "coming out". For me, Charlotte is the highlight of the novel. She is extremely naive, having been very sheltered growing up. She and a friend are just starting to discover some of the "facts of life" and they are very eye opening to Charlotte. She is of a liberal nature, which flies directly in the face of her father; a staunch conservative. She starts to explore suffragette meetings and marches and her family is absolutely horrified when they discover this. During the scuffle at such a march, a stranger saves Charlotte, who has gotten caught in the melee and is being beaten up. As she sits with the stranger to recover a little, and enters into conversation with him, she finds him fascinating. She finds his views and his conversation fascinating. She is drawn to him, though not in a romantic way and can see he feels the same. They arrange to meet again. Coincidentally, this man is Feliks, the anarchist. Lo and behold, the same anarchist her mother had an affair with just over 18 years ago! Felix has come to England to assassinate Lydia's Russian cousin, Prince Orlov, who is visiting the Waldens.
As events unfold, past secrets start to come to the surface, as they tend to do. Secrets Lydia had hoped and assumed would remain buried forever. It becomes evident that this story will end in tragedy and we must follow the train wreck through to its end, to discover when and how it crashes and who will survive.
The story has some entertaining and interesting parts. There are some historical details weaved into it. Most of the characters are not developed to the point where you can empathize with them, there is not enough time spent on them and alot of going back and forth. It seems like it's designed to have you sympathize with the anarchist, but that's just not possible given his lack of value of human life and the number of murders he's committed. Shallow would be the best description of both the story and the characters. The writing is probably average at best. Certainly not the all encompassing good writing you can lose yourself in. But that being said, it is still entertaining. I would usually far prefer a book to a movie, but in this case it probably makes a better movie that a book. It has that kind of a feel.
Show More
anarchist. Lydia's family is part of the Russian nobility. As a young woman she has a wild streak, falling in love with an anarchist, Feliks. Her maid tells her father and her father has Feliks arrested. He then tells Lydia she will marry a man from the British aristocracy who has just asked for her hand. If she does so, he will have Feliks freed from prison (and being tortured). Lydia immediately complies and is whisked off to England where she begins her life as wife of a Lord. We meet up with the family during a time of high political drama and turmoil. Lord and Lady Walden have a high spirited 18 year old daughter, Charlotte who is also very beautiful and just "coming out". For me, Charlotte is the highlight of the novel. She is extremely naive, having been very sheltered growing up. She and a friend are just starting to discover some of the "facts of life" and they are very eye opening to Charlotte. She is of a liberal nature, which flies directly in the face of her father; a staunch conservative. She starts to explore suffragette meetings and marches and her family is absolutely horrified when they discover this. During the scuffle at such a march, a stranger saves Charlotte, who has gotten caught in the melee and is being beaten up. As she sits with the stranger to recover a little, and enters into conversation with him, she finds him fascinating. She finds his views and his conversation fascinating. She is drawn to him, though not in a romantic way and can see he feels the same. They arrange to meet again. Coincidentally, this man is Feliks, the anarchist. Lo and behold, the same anarchist her mother had an affair with just over 18 years ago! Felix has come to England to assassinate Lydia's Russian cousin, Prince Orlov, who is visiting the Waldens.
As events unfold, past secrets start to come to the surface, as they tend to do. Secrets Lydia had hoped and assumed would remain buried forever. It becomes evident that this story will end in tragedy and we must follow the train wreck through to its end, to discover when and how it crashes and who will survive.
The story has some entertaining and interesting parts. There are some historical details weaved into it. Most of the characters are not developed to the point where you can empathize with them, there is not enough time spent on them and alot of going back and forth. It seems like it's designed to have you sympathize with the anarchist, but that's just not possible given his lack of value of human life and the number of murders he's committed. Shallow would be the best description of both the story and the characters. The writing is probably average at best. Certainly not the all encompassing good writing you can lose yourself in. But that being said, it is still entertaining. I would usually far prefer a book to a movie, but in this case it probably makes a better movie that a book. It has that kind of a feel.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Kristelh
Reason read: BAC, Welsh writer
This is a story of espionage that is just prior to WWI.
The story involves an attempt to forge alliance with Russia because of Germany's arm escalation and movement towards attacking France. Feliks is an anarchist and an assassin with the intent to assassinate the
The story was interesting and engaging.
This is a story of espionage that is just prior to WWI.
The story involves an attempt to forge alliance with Russia because of Germany's arm escalation and movement towards attacking France. Feliks is an anarchist and an assassin with the intent to assassinate the
Show More
Russian prince that has come to negotiate with England against Germany.The story was interesting and engaging.
Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1982
ISBN
0451124383 / 9780451124388