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44th out of 486 books
—
614 voters
Jackdaws
by
Ken Follett (Goodreads Author)
In his own bestselling tradition of Eye of the Needle and The Key to Rebecca, Ken Follett once again strikes Nazi pay dirt as a gang of all-female saboteurs go behind German lines.
Paperback, 416 pages
Published
December 5th 2006
by NAL Trade
(first published November 1st 1996)
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Jackdaws could have been a very good World War II novel. It's about a group of women operatives (most of them criminals or malcontents) who are given a chance to serve their country and clear their records if they undertake a dangerous mission in France to blow up a Nazi communications center just as the D-Day invasion begins. Yes, the premise is very much a female Dirty Dozen.
The action and characterization of the book are okay but typical. There were just too many sex scenes. And the sad thin...more
The action and characterization of the book are okay but typical. There were just too many sex scenes. And the sad thin...more
Feb 19, 2012
Bettie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
nazi-related,
winter-20112012,
tbr-busting-2012,
fraudio,
published-1996,
wwii,
women,
war,
spies,
france,
adventure,
eye-scorcher
Read by Kate Reading. Unabridged, on 9 1/2 Tapes
blurb from Publishers Weekly- Time is running out. With D-Day rapidly approaching, the Nazis are actively trying to quash the French resistance. Meanwhile, Britain's Special Operations branch is working hard to supply the resistance with intelligence, supplies and agents. Felicity "Flick" Clairet is one of England's most effective operatives in northern France. Having failed in an assault on the Nazis' main European telephone exchange, she regroups...more
4 likes · like · see review
Brilliant! It just kept getting better & better. Great characters. Each one stood out on the page in their own right enticing you to read on.
Thrilling, gut wrenching action but tender, heart felt & humorous too.
A gritty war time novel for women ,although men may enjoy it too.
I wondered at first if this was going to be a hit or miss, but quickly figured I was onto a winner.
It actually had me on the edge of my seat from halfway through to the end.
I loved The Jackdaw women, great bunch, fro...more
Thrilling, gut wrenching action but tender, heart felt & humorous too.
A gritty war time novel for women ,although men may enjoy it too.
I wondered at first if this was going to be a hit or miss, but quickly figured I was onto a winner.
It actually had me on the edge of my seat from halfway through to the end.
I loved The Jackdaw women, great bunch, fro...more
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. Typically, war based stories are so full of minute details that they detract from the story for me. The plot sounded intriguing though, so I decided to give it a shot. It ended up being one of the better WWII stories that I have read. There was enough background information for me to underdstand the historical reference of the story, but it was balanced by a well developed plot. I like reading stories from a non-American perspective since it is a view...more
this was also a good one. also action packed. so many people die in this one. you get attached to the characters. good read.
Reading Jackdaws, like other Ken Follett titles I've read, is kind of like riding a moped. It's a lot of fun, but all the same you really don't want to be seen enjoying it. For me reading Follett is one of those guilty pleasures, where you know it isn't the best writing out there, the characters aren't particularly well developed, and in general the book isn't ground breaking or noteworthy in any way -- and yet you keep reading, because secretly it's kind of fun.
If you like WWII fiction with lot...more
If you like WWII fiction with lot...more
6 likes · like · see review
Ken Follet achieves the nearly impossible task of creating genuine suspense about an event that is well-known, with fresh characters, clever plotting, and surprising twists on an old story. You will enjoy this book on a long plane flight, or just sitting out on your porch during the lazy days of summer. I always enjoy Ken Follet's approach to history--crackerjack pacing, strong dialogue, and a deep desire to entertain. If only all writers cared as much about their audience's enjoyment as Follet...more
Resistance.... Ever since I was a little girl, I've been taken with the stories of such from WWII. The scene in a movie, the brief references in history classes, a series regarding British women who snuck into France when I was in high school .... It always pricked my skin, gave me goosebumps, a chill down my spine. From what little research I've done on the topic, I've discovered the coverage in my classes of yesteryear and in the media didn't come close to detailing the incredible passion and...more
As Brave as Man
As a book telling about the roles played by women during the World War II, I cheered it warmly. But compared to Follett's other books, this by no means should be categorized as a good one, only an OK one.
The story focused on an key task before the D-day, but elaborated from two threads. One side was Britain, with Flick as their leading figure, whereas the other side was from Germany, with Dieter as the top enemy. Of course, as the history already told us, the D-day was the turning...more
As a book telling about the roles played by women during the World War II, I cheered it warmly. But compared to Follett's other books, this by no means should be categorized as a good one, only an OK one.
The story focused on an key task before the D-day, but elaborated from two threads. One side was Britain, with Flick as their leading figure, whereas the other side was from Germany, with Dieter as the top enemy. Of course, as the history already told us, the D-day was the turning...more
1 like · like · see review
Sem dúvida fiquei fã do escritor, seja em trilher policial seja em trilher histórico, o sr. é um mestre. Já tinha lido dele A ameaça, e adorado. Este então estou a devorar cada página.
A história centra-se nos dias anteriores ao Dia D, que veio colocar fim à 2ª guerra mundial com a invasão final dos Aliados, num cenário de França, ocupada completamente pelas forças alemãs.. cujas, agentes especiais britânicos e a Resistência francesa lutavam para derrubar, pois o pais encontrava-se completamente...more
A história centra-se nos dias anteriores ao Dia D, que veio colocar fim à 2ª guerra mundial com a invasão final dos Aliados, num cenário de França, ocupada completamente pelas forças alemãs.. cujas, agentes especiais britânicos e a Resistência francesa lutavam para derrubar, pois o pais encontrava-se completamente...more
I am quite new to Ken Follett, having only recently read Pillars of the Earth and World Without End, both of which really caught my imagination. Jackdaws while it is more superficial than the epic Pillars of the Earth, is a very good engrossing story. An all female (well female-ish) team of special operative made up of the deluded, the dangerous and the brave, all of who would never be considered suitable for general duties or have already been rejected, parachute into France having trained for...more
Full video review here : http://mysterythriller.tv/jackdaws-by...
I have always found Ken Follett too verbose but this book was an excellent fast read with a great female lead character. Flick Clairet is one of a select group of women helping the French Resistance during the final years of the Second World War. She is married to a French man, the leader of the resistance in Reims and in the opening sequence we see a group of them fail to overcome a telephone exchange that is crucial to the German...more
I have always found Ken Follett too verbose but this book was an excellent fast read with a great female lead character. Flick Clairet is one of a select group of women helping the French Resistance during the final years of the Second World War. She is married to a French man, the leader of the resistance in Reims and in the opening sequence we see a group of them fail to overcome a telephone exchange that is crucial to the German...more
I picked this up on holiday because I'd read through the books I'd brought and this was the only one among the English-language secondhand paperbacks at the hotel I thought I could stand. It's okay, for what it is. Follett keeps the adrenaline going, but there's not much else here. The main characters are all impossibly good-looking and/or bursting with raw sexual energy (one can practically cast it with the appropriate Hollywood A-listers as one reads). The plot is full of twists, as one would...more
This offering of Ken Follett, while not up to Eye of the Needle or The Pillars of the Earth was nevertheless a good book to have on a trip with many delays due to weather and mechanical problems.
It chronicles the travails of a group of British women who are tasked to destroy a German telephone exchange just before D-Day, important because it was the main conduit for most of the military phone traffic between France and Berlin .
The plot is well-developed but I find Follett's characterizations to...more
It chronicles the travails of a group of British women who are tasked to destroy a German telephone exchange just before D-Day, important because it was the main conduit for most of the military phone traffic between France and Berlin .
The plot is well-developed but I find Follett's characterizations to...more
This book was pretty good. I doubt Ken Follett could write a bad book. I think it was a lot different than I was expecting. Even though the plot took place over a short 10 days, it still seemed like a very slow-building suspense than a page-turner. The characters weren't as fleshed out as they are in his epics (though how could they be?), but the details of undercover military operations and civilian life during the war were interesting (though a thing or two seemed unlikely - I won't give the p...more
As this book opens in 1944, Flick Clairet, an experienced British agent working with the French Resistance, fails to blow up a crucial piece of infrastructure. She returns to England and argues for a another shot at it; she is given leave to take a group of inexperienced female agents back to France with her and try again. Meanwhile, a German officer has captured the remnants of the original force and infiltrated the Resistance cell Flick expects to meet. Now Flick has to escort a group of rank...more
Almost 3.5 stars but not quite. My SO loves Ken Follett books, and I did greatly enjoy his historical novels. I try to veer away from war time novels and political thrillers, so reading this book was a departure for me.
Jackdaws is set in 1944, shortly before D Day. The main protagonist is Felicity Clairet aka Flick, a British spy who works in France together with the French Resistance, her husband Michel being the local leader in Reims. Their target is a chateau in the hands of the Gestapo, ser...more
Jackdaws is set in 1944, shortly before D Day. The main protagonist is Felicity Clairet aka Flick, a British spy who works in France together with the French Resistance, her husband Michel being the local leader in Reims. Their target is a chateau in the hands of the Gestapo, ser...more
I wish I could give this 2.5 stars, because my enjoyment level was slightly below average. One of my Facebook friends recommended this book to me when I asked for suggestions of page-turners that weren't too James Patterson-y. Although this one wasn't very Patterson-esque, it didn't knock my socks off, either.
My main problem with the book is that it is so plot driven, the characters are *barely* developed. Some folks like that sort of writing, but I do not. I considered abandoning the book after...more
My main problem with the book is that it is so plot driven, the characters are *barely* developed. Some folks like that sort of writing, but I do not. I considered abandoning the book after...more
"Exactly fifty women were sent into France as secret agents by the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Of those, thirty-six survived the war. The other fourteen gave their lives. This book is dedicated to all of them."
So. Damn. Good.
Ken Follett is best known for his sweeping epics Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, and Fall of Giants which span decades, but in Jackdaws he manages to apply his same talent for engrossing description into a story that takes 10 days. The...more
So. Damn. Good.
Ken Follett is best known for his sweeping epics Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, and Fall of Giants which span decades, but in Jackdaws he manages to apply his same talent for engrossing description into a story that takes 10 days. The...more
This is the story of Flick Clairet, a female British SOE spy (loosely based on the life of Pearl Witherington) who has gone behind the lines in occupied France throughout WWII. She fails to take out a telephone switch that handles the the traffic between France and Berlin, and attempts to go back and take it out with an all female team before the Allied Invasion.
It had a great and colorful class of characters and rejects who are brought together for the project. It was full of plot twists and an...more
It had a great and colorful class of characters and rejects who are brought together for the project. It was full of plot twists and an...more
I keep reading Ken Follett even though he really, honestly isn't a very good writer. I'm trying to figure out how the hell he manages, with his short declarative sentences, trite characterization and funkily convoluted plots, to hook me so thoroughly that I will stay up all night to finish. But he does, whether he's writing about medieval towns or, as in this case, occupied France in 1944. Um, now I'm trying to remember some details. They are fading! Fading fast! There's a girl and, and, another...more
Feb 02, 2013
Inga
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
thriller,
historical-novel
Hörbuch-Rezension:
Die Leopardin ist der Deckname einer britischen Agentin im besetzten Frankreich von 1945. Eigentlich heißt sie Felicity Clairet und sie hat nur zehn Tage Zeit, um mit einem auf die Schnelle zusammen gestellten, leicht skurilen Team einen gefährlichen Auftrag zu erfüllen. Ihr Gegenspieler ist der deutsche Major Franck, der an Grausamkeit, aber auch an Intelligenz fast nicht zu überbieten zu sein scheint.
Die Darstellung des historischen Stoffes ist überzeugend und realistisch. Di...more
Die Leopardin ist der Deckname einer britischen Agentin im besetzten Frankreich von 1945. Eigentlich heißt sie Felicity Clairet und sie hat nur zehn Tage Zeit, um mit einem auf die Schnelle zusammen gestellten, leicht skurilen Team einen gefährlichen Auftrag zu erfüllen. Ihr Gegenspieler ist der deutsche Major Franck, der an Grausamkeit, aber auch an Intelligenz fast nicht zu überbieten zu sein scheint.
Die Darstellung des historischen Stoffes ist überzeugend und realistisch. Di...more
I am not a regular fan of Ken Follett. I read Pillars of the Earth and liked it. But my daughter had read Jackdaws when she was a student in Europe and recommended it. Being an author myself, I continually look for technique and style features that I can either incorporate into my writing, or use as illustrations in writing class. Jackdaws is a great story, keeping me interested all the way along. The premise is that a British agent fails in her attempt to destroy a telephone switchboard center...more
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Follett is probably best known for his wartime spy stories, e.g., “Key to Rebecca” and “Eye of the Needle.” We find these stories fairly good, but were totally wowed by his two medieval tomes; yet sorely disappointed in a story he wrote in contemporary time (“Third Twin”).
In this tale, it’s just a week or so before D-Day, and in France, everybody seems to know the big day is imminent, including the Germans; and the French Resistance is gearing up to create as much accompanying havoc as possible....more
In this tale, it’s just a week or so before D-Day, and in France, everybody seems to know the big day is imminent, including the Germans; and the French Resistance is gearing up to create as much accompanying havoc as possible....more
Le gazze ladre è il nome in codice di un gruppo di donne che a pochi giorni dallo sbarco in Normandia deve portare a termine una pericolosa missione di sabotaggio nella Francia occupata dai nazisti. Questa, in breve, la trama. Per quanto riguarda il mio commento… wow!!! Quanto m’era mancato Ken Follett! Innanzitutto, io adoro i libri storici, e quindi, vabbè, sono un po’ di parte. Ma la storia è molto avvincente, come al solito i personaggi sono tutti affascinanti, e dalle molte sfaccettature, t...more
British undercover agents are parachuting to the occupied France to collaborate with the local Resistance against the Nazis during WW2. The agents are female, the target is a telephone exchange that handles most of the calls to and from Germany, and the time is one week before the Invasion of Normandy. Follett blends these major ingredients into a highly dynamic narrative full of twists and turns.
There is a strong female lead character, who is chased by an equally smart (albeit less lucky) Germ...more
There is a strong female lead character, who is chased by an equally smart (albeit less lucky) Germ...more
I found this book in a bargin bin at Chapters. For a couple books, I picked it up. That was almost 10 years ago and I remember the moment clearly. Why? Because that was my introduction to Ken Follett and what has become a passion for anything he writes.
This books sucks you in right away. And you don't have to be a war enthusiast to enjoy it. My favourite aspect? It wasn't taken from the side of the ever popular Brits, Americans, or Russians. I find a lot of WWII books always seem to forget ther...more
This books sucks you in right away. And you don't have to be a war enthusiast to enjoy it. My favourite aspect? It wasn't taken from the side of the ever popular Brits, Americans, or Russians. I find a lot of WWII books always seem to forget ther...more
Dec 16, 2012
Ana Filipa
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
my-books,
read-in-2012
Em primeiro lugar começo por dizer que não só o autor, como também o livro me surpreenderam.
Este foi o primeiro livro que escolhi para dar início às leituras de Ken Follett, pois nunca tinha lido nada deste autor. Fiquei um pouco de pé atrás quando li a sinopse, pois pensei ser mais um de tantos livros que iriam descrever espiões e situações horríveis passadas durante a Segunda Grande Guerra. No entanto, este livro surpreendeu-me pela positiva, uma vez que não entramos apenas na trama que se sit...more
Este foi o primeiro livro que escolhi para dar início às leituras de Ken Follett, pois nunca tinha lido nada deste autor. Fiquei um pouco de pé atrás quando li a sinopse, pois pensei ser mais um de tantos livros que iriam descrever espiões e situações horríveis passadas durante a Segunda Grande Guerra. No entanto, este livro surpreendeu-me pela positiva, uma vez que não entramos apenas na trama que se sit...more
I thought the main characters were well drawn and three dimensional but perhaps some of the subsidiary ones were a little two dimensional or WWII cliched (but then you can't develop all the characters in a fairly large cast without slowing things down, can you?). However, I really enjoyed the locations, suspense, pacing, fear-atmoshphere and action. The anticipation of going behind enemy lines, not knowing who to trust or how you are ever going to get out together with really fearing for the mai...more
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Ken Follett burst onto the book world in 1978 with Eye of the Needle, a taut and original thriller with a memorable woman character in the central role. The book won the Edgar award and became an outstanding film.
He went on to write four more bestselling thrillers: Triple; The Key to Rebecca; The Man from St Petersburg; and Lie Down with Lions.
He also wrote On Wings of Eagles, the true story of ho...more
More about Ken Follett...
He went on to write four more bestselling thrillers: Triple; The Key to Rebecca; The Man from St Petersburg; and Lie Down with Lions.
He also wrote On Wings of Eagles, the true story of ho...more
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Feb 04, 2013 11:12am
Feb 05, 2013 06:50am