The conclusion of the Century Trilogy takes the characters through another generation and the Cold War, 1960 to 1989. As with the previous two volumes, the ensemble cast is at the heart of changes in Berlin, London, Moscow, and especially Washington, where the Civil Rights movement seizes the world's attention and affects change in the southern states. This is a book only Follett could write, connecting and reconnecting these families from around the the world as they work close to the seats of power, straining for better societies. It is ironic and a bit amusing to see Follett portray racist southern cops in the 1960s, so similar to the East German Secret Police and the KGB.
This may be the weakest of the three giant novels, perhaps because the events are less immediate in their impact and separated by time and distance. The first two books are centered on the World Wars, but there's nothing like that here. The Cuban missile crisis almost leads to war, but it comes and goes fairly early. The Berlin Wall, the Civil Rights Act, Vietnam, all drag out while the world goes on, mostly unchanged. There is, for the third book in a row, regular and graphic sex. Besides the entertainment value, this has served the author well to create the next generation, for the next book.

Actual rating 3.5*

This is the third volume in Ken Follett's Century Trilogy. I read the first two volumes, Fall of Giants and Winter of the World which cover the events surrounding World War I and World War II respectively. I gave them both five stars as I have given many other of Ken Follett's novels. I was warned by others about this last volume in the series, but I felt that I had to read it. My evaluation: 1100 pages of pure garbage. It covers the period 1960 to 1989. I am older than Ken Follett and I lived through those times and this book is simply fake history. Historical novels can contain alternative history, or a lot of made-up characters and events to fill in the gaps when there is no accurate historical record, but this book is not that. It is simply fake history pretending to be real. How does one pretend to tell the story of this time period without ever mentioning, to name just a few events and important historical persons: the space race and men landing on the moon; the oil and financial crises of the '70'; the Iran hostage crisis, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan; the attempted assassinations of Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II, Margaret Thatcher; the Falklands War. How does an author spend hundreds of pages discussing fake rock and roll stars and the cultural revolution and not mention Woodstock? How does he discuss American politics and the Kennedy dynasty and not mention Chappaquiddick? How does he discuss Vietnam protests and not mention Kent State?

After all he had 1100 pages to do it, but instead, Follett creates fake people (I won't call them characters because they are not characters but caricatures) and fake events who drive the great events of the time and ignores or dismisses the real historical figures and events that did.

The fake history is actually dangerous because some readers, especially younger ones who did not live through these events might believe the nonsense that Follett spews out, particularly if they had read the real history he deals with in the first two books of the series.

Even with these serious flaws, if the book was entertaining or moving that could redeem it, but sadly it is not. It is a story populated by caricatures who are stupid, promiscuous, drug addicted or delusional fools.

One star is very generous, but Goodreads won't let you give less. This book goes into my very short "crap" folder.

I have read almost all of Ken Follett's books. They are great stories.

Let me just say that if Ken Follet's new book is anything like his previous books, I believe it will be great. I have to admit that I have only read the outline of the story but, from the little I read Follet's new book will be interesting. Sorry I if I gave the impression that I had already read the whole story.

This third and final book in the Century Trilogy demonstrates historical fiction done well. The novel, spanning the years from 1961 to 1989 with an epilogue dated November 4, 2008, gives a perspective of those times of incredible political and social turmoil as seen through the eyes of several different families. The characters are descended from many that were introduced in FALL OF GIANTS, continued in WINTER OF THE WORLD, and have significant roles during this period of revolution and change. Through their eyes and involvement, the reader experiences events such as the American Civil Rights movement, the Cuban Missile Crisis, as well as the assassinations of US President John F Kennedy, Senator Robert Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King. In addition, the war in Vietnam, Nixon's resignation and the fall of Communism, along with commentary on publishing, television programming, folk music and rock and roll are related through the various viewpoints of the characters in this novel intertwining the fictional with the real historical figures in the unique way that only Ken Follett can write. That's a lot of material for just one novel and this one weighs in at a hefty 1120 pages.

Assuming a certain level of research and allowing for the license of relative fabrication provided when writing fiction, the novel maintains a fast pace switching to and fro between the different time periods, countries and characters involved in the pivotal historical moments. There is a bit of suspension of disbelief required, but forgiven, as the interaction between Follett's characters and those key people involved in genuine events make the narrative unfold smoothly. For the most part, I relished the book and the history lessons within. Since I am not a historian, I can make no judgment about the accuracy of each situation as it is described and my review and enjoyment of reading it has no bearing on its historical merit even if a few things seemed a bit dubious with some political bias on the part of the author a bit evident.

Now, the truth is that there was definitely an unneeded and distracting emphasis in the book that I did not particularly appreciate and that was Follett's continual focus on the sex lives of his characters. In fact, if most of that was left out of the novel, I suspect it could be shortened by at least 100 pages or more! Perhaps others like this type of salacious drivel, but to me, it didn't enhance or add any value to the story. The characters definitely had some problems in their love lives and relationships but I think that many unnecessary scenes -- such as one describing two women naked in front of a mirror trying on bras -- were a waste of Follett's talent. I just found myself skipping over and moving past when it became more than annoying. For all that Follett's many strong female characters do to advance the cause of women everywhere, they certainly often don't come off as really liberated as often they are reduced to stereotypes. I was able to ignore most of this in the novel and just get to the plot movement without ever feeling very attached to any of the romantic drama -- which suited me fine. I would really like to know if this is noted by other readers and what thoughts they have about it.

Finally, I do recommend this book and welcome the other reviews that are sure to come regarding historical accuracy of the events described in the novel. It brought back many memories of a time that I lived through but was too young to know much about while it was going on. Certainly the years of history and current events classes in school did not give me the same interest in the subject that I have now. I reminded myself often that this was not a research paper but a story that maybe, could, might have happened sort of like this.

Thank you to FirsttoRead via Penguin Books for the e-book ARC to review.

Quando ho iniziato questo libro avevo fatto tutto un piano che prevedeva che avrei impiegato molto tempo per leggerlo, tempo che mi sarebbe servito a recuperare tutte le recensioni. Ovviamente non avevo messo in conto che Ken Follett riesce a farmi divorare dei malloppi in pochissimo tempo - per queste 1200 pagine mi ci sono voluti dieci giorni, leggendo nemmeno così tanto -, quindi questo piano è andato in fumo.
I giorni dell'eternità è il volume conclusivo della Century Trilogy, volume che tratta il lasso di tempo più lungo (1961-1989) e che secondo me è stato quello che ha impegnato di più Ken Follett. Con questo romanzo ho rivisto il Ken Follett che avevo amato tanto ne La caduta dei giganti e che avevo un po' perso con L'inverno del mondo, dove avevo trovato la narrazione pesante in certe parti. Invece qui ho ritrovato il piacere delle immense descrizioni e anche le parti più toste, tutta la parte dedicata ai delicati rapporti USA-URSS, è scivolata in fretta. Il merito di Follett è di mostrare la storia attraverso gli occhi dei suoi fantastici personaggi, che si inseriscono in determinati momenti storici e non sembra nemmeno che non siano stati veramente lì. I miei preferiti stavolta erano George Jakes, Dimka e Tanja (è inutile, i russi ci sono sempre <3). Certo, non sempre mi sono trovata d'accordo con le scelte dei suoi personaggi, così come non mi è andato tanto giù il fatto che volesse per forza far passare per personaggi positivi persone che io non sopportavo - Beep Dewar, sto parlando di te, tu e la tua scusa dell'amore libero - ma okay, siamo liberi di scegliere come loro e tra tutta questa varietà ci sta che qualcuno non sia all'altezza o non risulti troppo simpatico. Ci sono stati anche personaggi che avevo sottovalutato, come Jasper Murray, che si è rivelato ben altro o personaggi che semplicemente erano fantastici ma che non hanno avuto spazio. Con questo romanzo Ken Follett chiude il cerchio di questa grande famiglia, perché sì, dopo quasi 100 anni lo sono diventati. Finalmente si è realizzato il mio sogno: vedere le famiglie riunite e alcuni di loro incontrarsi per la prima volta. Non è stato facile dire addio a ciascuno di loro, ma soprattutto a coloro che mi hanno rubato il cuore dal primo libro: Ethel, Maud e Grigorij. Di storie d'amore stile Maud/Walter non ce ne sono state ma probabilmente è dovuto anche al fatto che i tempi sono cambiati e Ken Follett ha dedicato loro un arco temporale più grande.
Un'altra cosa che amo di questi libri è il fatto che KF renda i personaggi storici gente come noi. So che molti storceranno il naso per questo, ma secondo me questa è l'unica soluzione per rendere il lettore partecipe per tutte queste pagine, perché vi assicuro che Follett non ci va leggero con tutta la parte storico/politica.
L'intento sicuramente era quello di regalare ai lettori un finale col botto e a mio avviso c'è riuscito, pur trovando a volte eccessive certe parti e preferendo invece un approfondimento di altre.
Le saghe famigliari sono il mio punto debole, qualunque sia il contesto in cui vengono inserite. Spero tanto che KF ne abbia qualcun'altra in cantiere, mi basterebbe anche un unico volume.

¿Nunca has lamentado que en clase de historia jamás diese tiempo a ver la guerra fría? en mi caso siempre nos tocó a final de curso y no nos dio tiempo a verlo. Así que gracias a este maravilloso libro he podido hechar una ojeada a esa época, maravillosamente explicada y enganchandote sin lugar en a dudas. aunque reconozco que la primera mitad está mejor que el resto, diré que ¡hay que leerla! Estupenda

Esta historia no me ha gustado tanto como las dos anteriores, a pesar de que tiene un final maravilloso. Voy a exponer en los siguientes puntos los motivos por los que esta novela tiene esta puntuación:

- En esta ocasión los personajes no me han transmitido prácticamente nada, sentía que eran historias recicladas de los libros anteriores, siento que estos personajes no tenían tanta personalidad como los de los dos primeros libros.
- la historia en general, aunque esta bien documentada, siento que pasa muchísimas cosas por encima, generaliza pero no involucra a ningún personaje por lo tanto los protagonistas se convierten en personajes secundarios dentro de su propia historia.
- Siento que en esta novela hay mucho relleno, muchos romances innecesarios, muchas historias de romance repetidas en las que solo cambia el nombre.
- Las escenas finales si han estado bien y como siempre digo, este autor tiene la capacidad de escribir libros largos pero amenos, aunque este particularmente se me ha hecho un poco pesado en algunas ocasiones.

Feliz de terminar la trilogía. Con nostálgica por dejar los personajes, con el sentimiento de estar viviendo en el cuarto libro.

4.5 stars

Edge of Eternity is Follett's bookend to his globe-trotting Century trilogy that began with Fall of Giants followed by Winter of the World: a strikingly immense multi-generational saga featuring families from Germany, Russia, Wales, England and America, weaving historical world conflicts of the 20th century.

In this final installment, we see the grandchildren of the epic WWI story course through the remnants of WWII, the Cold War, and the civil rights movement of the 1960's. Follett's undertaking of the political crises of the next 3 decades, steered ahead by the superpowers of the world, range from Communism, Social Democracy, freedom and civil rights, the threat of nuclear annihilation, espionage and government corruption, weaving them with creativity, astute interpretation and insight.

The bulky novel is made highly readable by short chapters ending in enough suspense to drive the reader through a labyrinthine historical journey: a bus tour meandering through the seminal events that shaped the world of today. The most compelling of topics unfolded right here in America with the move for civil rights laws: issues which the Brothers Kennedy initially hesitated on while turning blind eyes to the violence waged on black people in the South.

Follett's mostly plausible characters are involved in real events, interacting with real world leaders; there are unmistakable characters resembling Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, 'Hanoi' Jane Fonda and The Beatles. I say 'mostly plausible' since I had one teeny issue with Maria Summers, JFK's mistress: a strong black woman who was one of the Freedom Riders, who stands firmly for equality for black people, goes to bed and falls hopelessly in love with the white American president who refused to sign the bill for civil rights. I had the impression of the black female captive of a white plantation 'massa'. She stood out as a character out of character.

Finally, this epic fact and fiction heavyweight is a story of victory: of freedom and democracy after a century of earth's bloodshed; the realization that was once a Dream - the attainment of civil rights after such violent struggle, culminating into the making of America's first black President; the failure of communism, the fall of corrupt world leaders and - not to be left unmentioned - the triumphant heralding of the birth of Rock and Roll.


All we are saying is give peace a chance.
Let me tell you now
Ev'rybody's talking about
Revolution, evolution, masturbation,
Flagellation, regulation, integrations,
Meditations, United Nations,
Congratulations.
- John Lennon

O ultimo livro da trilogia mais espetacular que já li, nos ultimos tempos.

Começa nos anos 60, já em plena presidencia Kennedy e acaba em 1989, com a queda do Muro de Berlim, portanto muitos eventos a cobrir: a formação e fim do Bloco Sovietico, a crise dos misseis de Cuba, o aparecimento do rock n´roll, das dependencias de estupefacientes, a glorificação de estrelas de rock, actrizes, o Dr. King, a mortede JFK e do seu irmão, Bobby, a persegução a Stasi na Aleand de Leste, o movimento hippie, etc

É o livro mais extenso de toda trilogia, mas também o que tem mais eventos para rlatar e deslinda e o que tem mais personagens - historicas e ficcionais - para dar andamento. A prosa é fluida e viciante, pois os acontecimentos da esfera privada das personagens ficcionais entrançam-se na perfeição com os acontecimentos historicos, e mundias com as personagens reais que neles participaram.

Uma lição de Historia magistral sem se tornar maçuda e explicada de tal forma que qualquer um, que não perceba grande coisa de intriga politica (tal como eu) consegue perceber o acontecimentos, porque é que aconteceram e porquê daquela maneira.

Recomendo vivamente, fiquei com pena de me despedir das personagens - todas muito completas a 3D, humanas até mais não - incrivel! Kenn Follet conseguiu outra vez!

UFA! Iniciei em Janeiro esta trilogia e finalmente dou por terminada a leitura. Foi uma proeza e estou feliz!

Apraz-me quando um livro me incita a fazer pesquisas; por diversas vezes senti-me compelida a saber ainda mais sobre o séc. XX.

A obra abarca os conflitos das grandes guerras até à denominada guerra fria, à criação e queda do muro de Berlim, a emancipação da mulher, a luta pela igualdade de género, de raça, de ideologias, a opressão dos regimes totalitários, etc etc etc.

Aprendi, relembrei, pesquisei por forma a perceber melhor os dados factuais.

Acompanhei as famílias entre gerações, enredadas na multiplicidade de acontecimentos.

Apaixonei-me por umas tantas e tornaram-se-me tão próximas que me vai custar a separação.

Assisti desde as pequenas às grandes decisões dos líderes mais influentes no grande palco do mundo.

Assumo, sem reservas, como uma mais valia, pela junção de entretenimento a recapitular/compreender melhor este nosso passado mais recente.