You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
Slow beginning. If you can make it half way through it picks up. The romance story line was definitely cheesy.
I had been meaning to read some Ken Follett after my mom read and effusively praised Pillars of the Earth. I honestly don't know how I hadn't read any of his work considering it's right up my alley. I picked up Whiteout from my used bookstore for ~$4 (and the original receipt for $27 from Barnes & Noble was still in the book jacket LOL).
Quick synopsis: In snowy Scotland on Christmas Eve, a family gathers in their father's home to celebrate the holiday. Meanwhile, just a few miles away, a deadly virus goes missing from a secured lab known as the Kremlin.
Whiteout definitely gave me Dan Brown vibes, especially if you crossed one of his books with that show Succession (lots of wealth and ungrateful children). The protagonist, Toni - a dedicated police officer-turned security specialist - races against the clock to contain the virus before it's unleashed on an innocent public. At the same time, she's babysitting the founder of the company, a kind older man with professional and personal drama coming out the woodwork.
I loved Toni, and I actually loved the entire messy Oxenford family. I can't say I understood the purpose of Toni's mom, the puppy, or the unrequited love from the reporter, but I digress. Despite having a large cast of characters, I enjoyed most of them and thought the suspense was well choreographed with so many actors on the stage. There was a fair amount of action, the narration was steady, and the story was compelling from cover to cover.
MINI TINY SPOILER: I only have two complaints:
(1) WHAT IS WITH THAT EPILOGUE?! If you're familiar with my reviews, you know I hate epilogues. There was zero need for that last chapter on the family vacation. It was too on the nose for a story that, until then, had been crafted with a bit more care.
(2) Look, I haven't read enough Ken Follett to know if this is typical of his writing, but I did find some of the descriptions of the female characters to be lazy and offensive. From the "ugly" Daisy, the overweight sister whose body is directly compared to her sister's, to Toni's mother harping on her daughters' doomed spinsterhood, I thought these characterizations could have been done away with. The frequency with which he describes Daisy as unattractive became tiresome about half way through the book. We get it - you think there are "pretty" women who are feminine, and there are "ugly" women who are brutish. What floored me most was Daisy having nice hands and what a SHOCK it was supposed to be. Really? Dainty hands is where we're at? I expect better from someone with such a praised body of work.
Quick synopsis: In snowy Scotland on Christmas Eve, a family gathers in their father's home to celebrate the holiday. Meanwhile, just a few miles away, a deadly virus goes missing from a secured lab known as the Kremlin.
Whiteout definitely gave me Dan Brown vibes, especially if you crossed one of his books with that show Succession (lots of wealth and ungrateful children). The protagonist, Toni - a dedicated police officer-turned security specialist - races against the clock to contain the virus before it's unleashed on an innocent public. At the same time, she's babysitting the founder of the company, a kind older man with professional and personal drama coming out the woodwork.
I loved Toni, and I actually loved the entire messy Oxenford family. I can't say I understood the purpose of Toni's mom, the puppy, or the unrequited love from the reporter, but I digress. Despite having a large cast of characters, I enjoyed most of them and thought the suspense was well choreographed with so many actors on the stage. There was a fair amount of action, the narration was steady, and the story was compelling from cover to cover.
MINI TINY SPOILER: I only have two complaints:
(1) WHAT IS WITH THAT EPILOGUE?! If you're familiar with my reviews, you know I hate epilogues. There was zero need for that last chapter on the family vacation. It was too on the nose for a story that, until then, had been crafted with a bit more care.
(2) Look, I haven't read enough Ken Follett to know if this is typical of his writing, but I did find some of the descriptions of the female characters to be lazy and offensive. From the "ugly" Daisy, the overweight sister whose body is directly compared to her sister's, to Toni's mother harping on her daughters' doomed spinsterhood, I thought these characterizations could have been done away with. The frequency with which he describes Daisy as unattractive became tiresome about half way through the book. We get it - you think there are "pretty" women who are feminine, and there are "ugly" women who are brutish. What floored me most was Daisy having nice hands and what a SHOCK it was supposed to be. Really? Dainty hands is where we're at? I expect better from someone with such a praised body of work.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
With the story lasting only 3 days there's no time to waste, Follett leaps right in from page 1 and it's edge of seat from then on.
The story begins on Christmas Eve at a drug research facility who hold a deadly virus and hopefully a cure. You know immediately things are not going to go well for our hero but will she prevail during a blizzard that makes every step made so much harder and an ex husband who refuses to accept she knows what she is doing.
Great book, hard to put down.
The story begins on Christmas Eve at a drug research facility who hold a deadly virus and hopefully a cure. You know immediately things are not going to go well for our hero but will she prevail during a blizzard that makes every step made so much harder and an ex husband who refuses to accept she knows what she is doing.
Great book, hard to put down.
La historia es diferente de como me la esperaba, habiendo leído el resumen… pero eso no quiere decir que sea malo o no me haya gustado. Sí que es cierto que hay cosas que me chirrían un poco (como la relación entre Toni y Stanley, sin decir más para no hacer spoiler xD). Y además en general no me parece de la mejores de Follett. Pero a pesar de todo me ha parecido una novela entretenida, con buen ritmo y que se lee bien. Y que un libro consiga eso ya le da suficiente valor :)
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail
Thriller qui se passe principalement sur seulement deux jours, mais qui garde vraiment l’attention. Les personnages sont simples, mais attachants. L’histoire est de plus en plus absurde, mais réaliste.
Les points négatifs sont que le début était assez long avant qu’il y ait de l’action. Il n’y avait pas de longueurs, c’était seulement une mise en situation. Deuxième point négatif est l’accentuation inutile de l’auteur sur le sexe dans les relations entre les personnages.
Ken Follett does it again. Another great storyline that will grab you from the first couple of paragraphs.
I enjoyed Whiteout. Was it Follett's best? No. However, it is not nearly as dreadful as some reviewers are claiming. I'm a huge Follett fan. So, this suspense novel did not disappoint.
Although an alternate title could be "Cell Phones: Everything That Can Go Wrong Will Go Wrong," this was a fun and suspenseful page-turner. A deadly virus, a heist, a blizzard -- and all in the Scottish countryside. Right up my alley. Unfortunately, the romances irked me a bit, and the ending was disappointing. But I still enjoyed the story and stayed up late each night to read a few extra chapters.