Ken Follett
Another series by Follett is The Kingsbridge Series which comprises The Pillars of the Earth (1989), World Without End (2008), and A Column of Fire (2017). Follett has also published more than a dozen stand-alone novels.
Follett began writing in the 1970s, first as a news reporter, and then writing fiction as a hobby while working in book publishing. His 1978 novel Eye of the Needle became an international best-seller and won an Edgar Award, firmly establishing Follett as a novelist. In 1981 Eye of the Needle became a movie starring Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan. Listen to the Eye of the Needle audiobook narrated by Eric Lincoln.
On a number of occasions Follett published under the pseudonyms ‘Simon Myles’, ‘Bernard L Ross’, and ‘Martin Martinsen’. Follett lists Stephen King, Lee Child, and Jane Austen among his favourite authors, and he says that as a child he was inspired by Enid Blyton.
Follett studied philosophy at University College London. He was made a fellow of the college in 1995. He is a Fellow of The Welsh Academy, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He has been awarded honorary degrees by a number of universities including Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan where a collection of his papers are kept in archive.
Ken Follett was born 5 June 1949 in Cardiff, Wales. He lives in Stevenage, and also has homes in London and Antigua.
Ken Follett Audiobooks
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The Pillars of the Earth
- Kingsbridge, Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 40 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known...of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul...of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame...and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state and brother against brother.
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Missing an important chapter!!
- By brandon bailey on 06-01-2021
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World Without End
- Kingsbridge, Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 45 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
On the day after Halloween, in the year 1327, four children slip away from the cathedral city of Kingsbridge. They are a thief, a bully, a boy genius, and a girl who wants to be a doctor. In the forest they see two men killed. As adults, their lives will be braided together by ambition, love, greed and revenge. They will see prosperity and famine, plague and war.
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A wonderful follow up
- By Michelle on 29-06-2017
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A Column of Fire
- Kingsbridge, Book 3
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 30 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Christmas 1558, and young Ned Willard returns home to Kingsbridge to find his world has changed. The ancient stones of Kingsbridge Cathedral look down on a city torn by religious hatred. Europe is in turmoil as high principles clash bloodily with friendship, loyalty and love, and Ned soon finds himself on the opposite side from the girl he longs to marry, Margery Fitzgerald. Then Elizabeth Tudor becomes queen and all of Europe turns against England.
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What a disappointment
- By RayNorris on 09-11-2017
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Fall of Giants
- Century Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 30 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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.
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A gripping and unmissable historical fiction!
- By Sue on 18-02-2014
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The Pillars of the Earth
- Kingsbridge, Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 40 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known...of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul...of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame...and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state and brother against brother.
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Missing an important chapter!!
- By brandon bailey on 06-01-2021
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World Without End
- Kingsbridge, Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 45 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
On the day after Halloween, in the year 1327, four children slip away from the cathedral city of Kingsbridge. They are a thief, a bully, a boy genius, and a girl who wants to be a doctor. In the forest they see two men killed. As adults, their lives will be braided together by ambition, love, greed and revenge. They will see prosperity and famine, plague and war.
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A wonderful follow up
- By Michelle on 29-06-2017
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A Column of Fire
- Kingsbridge, Book 3
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 30 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Christmas 1558, and young Ned Willard returns home to Kingsbridge to find his world has changed. The ancient stones of Kingsbridge Cathedral look down on a city torn by religious hatred. Europe is in turmoil as high principles clash bloodily with friendship, loyalty and love, and Ned soon finds himself on the opposite side from the girl he longs to marry, Margery Fitzgerald. Then Elizabeth Tudor becomes queen and all of Europe turns against England.
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What a disappointment
- By RayNorris on 09-11-2017
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Fall of Giants
- Century Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 30 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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.
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A gripping and unmissable historical fiction!
- By Sue on 18-02-2014
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Winter of the World
- Century Trilogy, Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 31 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Five linked families live out their destinies as the world is shaken by tyranny and war in the mid-20th century. Berlin in 1933 is in upheaval. Eleven-year-old Carla von Ulrich struggles to understand the tensions disrupting her family as Hitler strengthens his grip on Germany. Into this turmoil step her mother’s formidable friend and former British MP, Ethel Leckwith, and her student son, Lloyd, who soon learns for himself the brutal reality of Nazism.
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Just as good as the first
- By Rachel on 29-07-2015
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Edge of Eternity
- Century Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 36 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
As the decisions made in the corridors of power bring the world to the brink of oblivion, five families from across the globe are brought together in an unforgettable tale of passion and conflict during the Cold War. When Rebecca Hoffmann, a teacher in East Germany, finds herself pursued by the secret police, she discovers that she has been living a lie. Her younger brother, Walli, longs to escape across the Berlin Wall to Britain to become part of the burgeoning music scene.
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Wowee!
- By Christy on 14-04-2016
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Whiteout
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Sally Armstrong
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Filled with startling twists, Whiteout is the ultimate knife-edge drama from Ken Follett - an international best-selling author who is in a class of his own. As a blizzard whips down from the north on Christmas Eve, several people converge on a remote family house. Stanley Oxenford, director of a pharmaceutical research company, has everything riding on a drug he is developing to fight a lethal virus.
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loved it
- By chappy on 24-04-2016
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Fall of Giants
- Century Trilogy (abridged), Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Dan Stevens
- Length: 12 hrs and 53 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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.
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Engaging telling of 29th century history
- By Anonymous User on 11-03-2022
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Hornet Flight
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Nigel Carrington
- Length: 13 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It is June 1941 and Denmark is under German occupation. On the rocky coast of Denmark, two brothers, Harald and Arne Olufsen, starkly different in nature, are straining against the rigid confines imposed by their austere, elderly parents and trying to find their own way in life. Meanwhile, a network of MI6 spies is attempting to decipher an encrypted Luftwaffe radio signal which mentions the new Freya-Gerät - a rudimentary form of German radar equipment.
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Follett weaves fiction into history fabulously.
- By Phillip on 19-12-2014
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Jackdaws
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Samantha Bond
- Length: 3 hrs and 11 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Two weeks before D-Day, the French Resistance attack a chateau containing a telephone exchange vital to German communications. But the building is heavily guarded, and the attack fails disastrously. Flick Clairet, a young British secret agent, proposes a daring new plan: she will parachute into France with an all-woman team known as the "Jackdaws", and they will penetrate the chateau in disguise.
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Triple
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Christopher Timothy
- Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It is 1968. Israeli Intelligence has learned that Egypt, with Soviet help, will develop atomic bombs within months - an untimely end for the young nation, unless a source of uranium for Israeli bombs can be found. That's impossible, of course, unless someone as improbable as the plan itself can be found to steal it. Working alone, Israeli agent Nat Dickstein concocts an ingenious scenario for the biggest, and quietest, hijacking in history.
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Night over Water
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Clive Mantle
- Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
On a bright September morning in 1939, two days after Britain has declared war, a group of privileged but desperate people gather in Southampton to board the largest, most luxurious airliner ever built - the Pan American Clipper, bound for New York: an English aristocrat, fleeing with his family and a fortune in jewels; a German scientist, escaping from the Nazis; a murderer under FBI escort; a young wife running away from a domineering husband; and a handsome, unscrupulous thief.
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Under the Streets of Nice
- The Bank Heist of the Century
- By: Ken Follett, Rene L. Maurice
- Narrated by: Roddy McDowall
- Length: 3 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In 1976, Albert Spaggiari engineered the European crime of the century - a bank heist in Nice accomplished "without guns, without violence, without hate." Spaggiari and his gang of 20 men dug a 25-foot tunnel from the city's sewer system into the bank and lifted about $10 million in gold, jewelry, gems, and cash. Tracked down and captured, Spaggiari escaped from the French police by jumping out a window and onto the back of a motorcycle.
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The Key to Rebecca
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Tim Pigott-Smith
- Length: 3 hrs and 7 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
He is known to the Germans as "Sphinx" but to others as Alex Wolff, a European businessman. He arrives suddenly in Cairo from out of the desert, armed with a radio set, a lethal blade, and a copy of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca - a ruthless man with a burning conviction that he will win at all costs.
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Winter of the World
- Century Trilogy (abridged), Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Berlin in 1933 is in upheaval. Eleven-year-old Carla von Ulrich struggles to understand the tensions disrupting her family as Hitler strengthens his grip on Germany. Into this turmoil step her mother’s formidable friend and former British MP, Ethel Leckwith, and her student son, Lloyd, who soon learns for himself the brutal reality of Nazism. He also encounters a group of Germans resolved to oppose Hitler - but are they willing to go so far as to betray their country?
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Code to Zero
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Lorelei King
- Length: 3 hrs and 3 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
A man wakes up to find himself lying on the ground in a railway station, his mind stripped bare of all recollection. He has no idea how he got there. He does not even know his own name. Convinced he is a drunken down and out, it isn't until a newspaper report about a satellite launch catches his eye that he begins to suspect all is not what it seems.
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Under the Streets of Nice
- The Bank Heist of the Century
- By: Ken Follett, Rene L. Maurice
- Narrated by: Roddy McDowall
- Length: 3 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In 1976, Albert Spaggiari engineered the European crime of the century - a bank heist in Nice accomplished "without guns, without violence, without hate." Spaggiari and his gang of 20 men dug a 25-foot tunnel from the city's sewer system into the bank and lifted about $10 million in gold, jewelry, gems, and cash. Tracked down and captured, Spaggiari escaped from the French police by jumping out a window and onto the back of a motorcycle.
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The Key to Rebecca
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Tim Pigott-Smith
- Length: 3 hrs and 7 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
He is known to the Germans as "Sphinx" but to others as Alex Wolff, a European businessman. He arrives suddenly in Cairo from out of the desert, armed with a radio set, a lethal blade, and a copy of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca - a ruthless man with a burning conviction that he will win at all costs.
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Winter of the World
- Century Trilogy (abridged), Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Berlin in 1933 is in upheaval. Eleven-year-old Carla von Ulrich struggles to understand the tensions disrupting her family as Hitler strengthens his grip on Germany. Into this turmoil step her mother’s formidable friend and former British MP, Ethel Leckwith, and her student son, Lloyd, who soon learns for himself the brutal reality of Nazism. He also encounters a group of Germans resolved to oppose Hitler - but are they willing to go so far as to betray their country?
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Code to Zero
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Lorelei King
- Length: 3 hrs and 3 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
A man wakes up to find himself lying on the ground in a railway station, his mind stripped bare of all recollection. He has no idea how he got there. He does not even know his own name. Convinced he is a drunken down and out, it isn't until a newspaper report about a satellite launch catches his eye that he begins to suspect all is not what it seems.
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Paper Money
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Standing
- Length: 2 hrs and 54 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
On one fateful day in Britain, fortunes change hands as a suicidal Junior Minister, an avaricious tycoon, and a seasoned criminal all play parts in a scheme that moves paper money around at a dizzying pace. Meanwhile, an ambitious young reporter for the Evening Post scrambles to crack the story. This early novel from Ken Follett, the author of On Wings of Eagles and The Key to Rebecca, plunges the reader into the worlds of crime, high finance, and journalism on the way to a masterfully plotted dramatic climax.
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John Standing
- By Amazon Customer on 18-02-2019
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The Man from St Petersburg
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Martin Shaw
- Length: 2 hrs and 56 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Follet's sensational best seller is set just before the outbreak of World War I, when Britain must enlist the aid of Russia. Czar Nicholas' nephew is to visit London for secret naval talks with Lord Walden, who has lived in Russia and has a Russian wife, Lydia. But there are other people who are interested in the arrival of Prince Alexei.
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Hornet Flight
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Alex Jennings
- Length: 4 hrs and 30 mins
- Abridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It is June 1941 and Denmark is under German occupation. On the rocky coast of Denmark, two brothers, Harald and Arne Olufsen, starkly different in nature, unite in an effort to overcome the Nazis. A disused Hornet Moth biplane is their only means of getting a vital message to the British.
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The Third Twin
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: Lorelei King
- Length: 3 hrs and 1 min
- Abridged
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Performance
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Story
In the course of her work, scientist Jeannie Ferrami stumbles across a baffling mystery: Steve and Dan appear to be identical twins, but were born on different days, to different mothers. A law student and a convicted murderer, they seem a world apart, but as Jeannie begins to fall in love with Steve, she finds her professional and personal future threatened. Steve is accused of a terrible crime, and Jeannie is forced to question just how different the two men really are.
Audiobook Review — Century Trilogy Book 1: Fall of Giants by Ken Follett
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Fall of Giants
- Century Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 30 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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.
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A gripping and unmissable historical fiction!
- By Sue on 18-02-2014
“Outstanding. I keep recommending this book to friends. It’s one of those books that both educates and entertains – a real winner as I feel I’m improving myself rather than simply indulging in escapism. If the sheer size of the traditional paper version puts you off, then this is definitely one to do audio-style. The narration is spot on. Rich story-telling in satisfying Follett style.” Robyn, Audible listener.
Audiobook Review — Century Trilogy Book 2: Winter of the World by Ken Follett
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Winter of the World
- Century Trilogy, Book 2
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 31 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Five linked families live out their destinies as the world is shaken by tyranny and war in the mid-20th century. Berlin in 1933 is in upheaval. Eleven-year-old Carla von Ulrich struggles to understand the tensions disrupting her family as Hitler strengthens his grip on Germany. Into this turmoil step her mother’s formidable friend and former British MP, Ethel Leckwith, and her student son, Lloyd, who soon learns for himself the brutal reality of Nazism.
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Just as good as the first
- By Rachel on 29-07-2015
“I’m a Ken Follett historical history fan from way back. There has never been anything other than a well-researched, brilliant novel. John Lee narrates the books like they were written for him. But Winter of the World has proved even Ken Follett can outdo himself! This should be required reading for history classes in England and the U.S. I have never been a real fan of the history of WWII but this was the easiest and most captivating history lesson I have ever had. Couldn’t stop listening. You just cannot go wrong with this book it’s a real winner.” Rachel, Audible listener.
Audiobook Review — Century Trilogy Book 3: Edge of Eternity by Ken Follett
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Edge of Eternity
- Century Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Ken Follett
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 36 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
As the decisions made in the corridors of power bring the world to the brink of oblivion, five families from across the globe are brought together in an unforgettable tale of passion and conflict during the Cold War. When Rebecca Hoffmann, a teacher in East Germany, finds herself pursued by the secret police, she discovers that she has been living a lie. Her younger brother, Walli, longs to escape across the Berlin Wall to Britain to become part of the burgeoning music scene.
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Wowee!
- By Christy on 14-04-2016
“An enthralling final part to the trilogy. I was hooked by the first part of the trilogy, was further entranced by the second and eagerly awaited this part. This third part of the trilogy was for me the best maybe because it covered my lifetime and reminded me of the momentous events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, the assassination of Kennedy and the fall of the Berlin Wall … John Lee has done a magnificent job narrating the trilogy comprising over 100 hours of compelling history, which I recommend listening to in chronological order.” Kristine, Audible listener.