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1.9k reviews for:
La Caída de Los Gigantes (the Century 1) / Fall of Giants (the Century, Book 1)
Ken Follett
4.19 AVERAGE
1.9k reviews for:
La Caída de Los Gigantes (the Century 1) / Fall of Giants (the Century, Book 1)
Ken Follett
4.19 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
informative
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
First, let me start with saying Ken Follett is the author of my one very favorite books - [b:The Pillars of the Earth|5043|The Pillars of the Earth (The Pillars of the Earth, #1)|Ken Follett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388193707s/5043.jpg|3359698] - and I've read most of his books and enjoyed them. However if you've never read Follett do not start here.
I started out liking this book a lot - the characters were interesting, I was interested in their lives and what was happening to them - up until the war started. Then the book became about history minutia and not at all about the characters. The more this 1000 page book went on the more I disliked it. I would have given it a 2 star rating, except that I did learn some things about WWI that I didn't know about before.
This book is not a story about great characters struggling through a terrible war. It's a history book about a terrible war with characters who could have been great (but weren't) thrown in to make it "fiction". The characters are in the book just to provide the framework to hang all the history on. They're there just to show up at all the important events, get married and have babies so he can write the next book.
It's really ridiculous that nearly 40 million people died in WWI but. Also ridiculous that all the characters knew each other before the war, constantly met up with each other during the war (across the trenches, randomly running into each other in Paris, ending up in the same units together etc), and they all magically happened to be confidants of all the important players of the war and they were present for all of the important meetings and battles. It's beyond belief.
The level of historical detail in this book is maddening. I'm not exaggerating by saying 300 pages could have easily been cut out of this - unless you're super interested in the gritty details of who said what at a parliament meeting and which minister supported what political stance. Same goes for the Russian revolution parts. It went on way too long, was way too detailed and it became extremely tiresome.
I prefer my books to be character driven - this book is just an info dump of all the details Follett knows about the era. I don't think I'm going to read the next book. I'm really disappointed with Follett on this one.
I started out liking this book a lot - the characters were interesting, I was interested in their lives and what was happening to them - up until the war started. Then the book became about history minutia and not at all about the characters. The more this 1000 page book went on the more I disliked it. I would have given it a 2 star rating, except that I did learn some things about WWI that I didn't know about before.
This book is not a story about great characters struggling through a terrible war. It's a history book about a terrible war with characters who could have been great (but weren't) thrown in to make it "fiction". The characters are in the book just to provide the framework to hang all the history on. They're there just to show up at all the important events, get married and have babies so he can write the next book.
It's really ridiculous that nearly 40 million people died in WWI but
Spoiler
none of the main characters died, despite being on the front linesThe level of historical detail in this book is maddening. I'm not exaggerating by saying 300 pages could have easily been cut out of this - unless you're super interested in the gritty details of who said what at a parliament meeting and which minister supported what political stance. Same goes for the Russian revolution parts. It went on way too long, was way too detailed and it became extremely tiresome.
I prefer my books to be character driven - this book is just an info dump of all the details Follett knows about the era. I don't think I'm going to read the next book. I'm really disappointed with Follett on this one.
Not enough people focus historical fiction on WWI era nor do the authors tell it as well as Follett. I especially enjoyed the variety of characters. A must reread before the next book in series comes out.
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
It's been a long time since I read a lengthy family saga, but I really enjoyed this one. I have forgotten so much that I have learned about World War I, so this epic did a lot to jog my memory about the causes and complications of "the Great War." I don't think I'd previously understood how the social class system contributed so heavily to the catastrophe, and how battlefield losses were such a catalyst for political change. "Fall of Giants," though, is not just a history lesson; it is filled with interesting and divergent characters, is well written, and kept me going through all 985 pages!
I really enjoyed this book. The characters are so well developed and the story shows in depth the many sides and perspectives of World War One. I can not wait to read the second book in this series. If I could I would give this book 4.5 stars just cause it is not one of my all time favorites but there is nothing I disliked about it.
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced