n  n

Awash in the dazzling light of high octane techno-thrillers and mil-spec fiction there is a need to sometimes get respite under the parasol of plain spy craft. And it all starts because of a Sherry party. TRIPLE doesn't start with a fire fight, a political assassination, or an epic rooftop chase after the protagonist stole the blueprints for a doomsday machine. The novel begins leisurely but it's mesmerizing and fully draws the reader into the characters, action and times. From page one it is quite obvious: a master story teller is at work. Ken Follet lays the ground work for a tragic tale of three friends who have gone in different directions and pledged allegiance to different and conflicting masters after the tumultous times of WW II and its aftermath.

Fast forward to the late 1960s and the stewing gumbo of Middle East tensions. The spy thriller mainstays, Mossad & KGB are in play with the addition of the Fedayeen. As relevant today as it was when TRIPLE was published in 1979, the story revolves around a high seas, high stakes derring-do and the devious chess match of recruiting, placing and moving espionage assets in Europe and the Middle East. Despite TRIPLE only accounting for 300 odd pages of espionage, Follett expertly makes the story feel much denser and deeper.

It would be easy to officially declare one side good and the other evil and it generally works well in two dimensional treatments of international affairs, especially after 20 years of war in the region following the horrific attacks on 9/11. TRIPLE, however, as the title ought to prophecy, is a deliciously multi-layered, complex affair that puts conviction, love, loyalty and dedication to country to the test. Based on a semi-secret real life operation, TRIPLE has plot twists aplenty, decisive and daring action, and characters that ring true. Follett delivers a thrilling spy caper all the way up to the last page that is a breathtaking race against time until the potentially explosive finale.

One of Ken Follett's older spy novels. A quick, easy, enjoyable read with the bonus of shedding some light on the history of Israel. Would recommend if you are a Follett fan, but it's a pass otherwise.

Decided this book wasn't for me. More a sort men would enjoy (or is that sexist). Not for me anyway

La emoción se fue cocinando lento y pausado, para terminar en una escena de acción digna de una película de Hollywood.

I'm reviewing this one on memory alone. I only read it once as an adolescent some 25-odd years ago, and had to resort to a google search to find out what it was that I had actually read.

What strikes me most in hindsight is the potency of this book's propaganda. I remember the Israeli protagonist being implausibly capable (he's actually compared to 'Captain America' by the female romantic interest) whereas the Arab (Palestinian?) antagonist is portrayed as cowardly and incompetent, the Russian antagonist not faring much better in that regard. Of course it is the protagonist, our stand-in for Western democratic / capitalist values that 'gets the girl' and 'saves the day'.

The book's (novelist's?) partisan cold-war politics should at the very least be taken with a grain of salt. Still, the arabophobia therein is barely concealed and quite heinious.

I actually preferred the first 75% of the book in which all the "chess pieces" were being put in place before the high-action ending.

Also, this was well on its way to a solid 4 stars but the description of the sex scenes knocks it down a whole star.

This is a fun, 'spy' based novel. Although the main character is a spy, he spends the majority of the book pulling off a mission. But there are two other spy characters that get involved, giving the book it's name (I think...).

Early in the book, the main character is tasked with stealing a huge amount of Uranium for Israel. However, Follett does an excellent job of presenting the story in a political free manner... somehow. If anything, he comes across as Israel neutral, which is quite the accomplishment for a book where you are engaged in rooting for the main character to acquire critical materials for Israel's nuclear bomb program. (While officially, Israel may or may not have 'the bomb', they also don't deny having it).

Thankfully, this book avoids the politics, and simply presents the story. Very loosely based upon real life event(s), this is clearly a novel. But, knowing that Israel did somehow procure this material, it may not be as far fetched as you might initially think. Overall, an excellent read, and good spy vs spy action.

(side note: my previously read book was Cat's Cradle, an anti atomic bomb story. I assure you, this is a coincidence!)

Okay I really like Follett, having started with his 13th century cathedral town book. I felt before I began this would be dated, cold war secrecy, atomic weapons. It was but it was still lots of fun. Sometimes these spy books get me a little lost because authors need to lead me a bit more than the average reader. But I enjoyed it, the background personalities, the personal goals, the extent of different industries one has to become familiar with to succeed.

But I do weary. And I jump to the last chapter to see about any happily-ever-after. And then the motivation to finish that intervening 180 pages (out of ~1000) evaporates.

Yet I still rate it a 4 star. Yes his story line is taut and slowly revealed but I still can't stand it. I've got other books, highly recommended than I can't even make time to get half way through. And I did keep this Follett with me at all times reading a couple of times daily. ...until I didn't.

Read the comments. Some readers claim Follet got the history totally wrong, and others say he was spot on and later revelations prove it.

A little confusing at times and, as Follett will do, goes into so much technical detail. This story talks about the race to develop nuclear/atomic weapons sometime around the 1960's and 70's. A spy novel with three countries competing for ways to get plutonium, Russia, Arabs and maybe Palestine. (listened to the audio)

I love Ken Folletts books but this one I thought wasn’t one of his best!
Plot confusing & messy at the beginning, it improved toward the middle of the book!
Too many protagonists, it was hard to follow who was following who!

Another great book by Ken Follett. This is a thriller that will keep you turning the pages. Looking forward to the next release, as I have now read all of his books that I can find.

Tecnicamente, gli ho assegnato una stellina, perché credo sia esattamente questa la valutazione più adatta a rappresentare il mio stato d'animo durante la lettura... Però una cosa bisogna dirla: questo, a modo suo, è uno di quei libri che fanno parecchio ridere, ragazzi... Se "Die Hard" e "Scary Movie" avessero avuto un figlio segreto, credo che il suo aspetto sarebbe stato più o meno questo!