Night over Water

By: Ken Follett

Narrated by: Tom Casaletto

Length: 14 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

On a bright September morning in 1939, two days after Britain declares war on Germany, a group of privileged but desperate people gather in Southhampton to board the largest, most luxurious airliner ever built - the Pan American Clipper - bound for New York.

The passengers include a fascist English aristocrat fleeing with his family and a fortune in jewels; a German scientist escaping from the Nazis; a murderer under FBI escort; a beautiful young woman heading for a new life; and a handsome, charming, unscrupulous thief.

They will be in the air for 30 hours, soothed by the carpeted lounges, the curtained beds, the gourmet dining room, and the endless champagne. But once inside the flying palace, there is no escape. Over the Atlantic, the Clipper's passengers are gripped by mounting fear and tension as their journey reaches the point of no return.

©1991 Ken Follett (P)1991 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Follet soars to a thoroughly satisfying ending with aeronautical precision." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Tom Casaletto's glib performance makes this seemingly endless journey fly by with ease. His many accents are first-rate." ( AudioFile)

Not enough character development

I never felt connected to any of the characters or found myself rooting for anyone in particular. For me, this book is simply a way to pass the time... it's nothing special. The narrator didn't impress me either - his speech seemed a bit rushed. I generally love books written by Ken Follet, but this one really surprised me, in a bad way.

Where's Bogie?

This book read like a film noir: a cross between Shirley Temple and Bogie & Bacall. The author spent most of the book setting up the conclusion and through interaction among the characters--it seemed to drag on and I almost put it down. Throughout, the reader was given interesting facts from which a conclusion might be drawn...not so fast, it's not all what it seems. If you like movies from the 1930s, this is the book for you.

Interesting story

Story and characters held my interest even if storyline about mafia somewhat difficult to believe. Felt the author's tendency toward erotic scenes were unnecessary to story and embarrassingly crass. It diminished the overall quality of the story telling.

pretty good yarn

Kept me listening. Enjoyed learning about the Clipper; had never heard of it. B plus

Great airplane book

The narrator did an excellent job. Story line entertaining. The "Clipper" history accurate.
Very pleasing read.

Night Over Water

The book kept my interest but I have read several of his novels that where much better.

Interesting story about flying boats and PanAm.

Would you listen to Night over Water again? Why?

Yes, Would want to catch some of the details missed.

What other book might you compare Night over Water to and why?

It seems to follow the same patterns of the other Ken Follett novels.

Have you listened to any of Tom Casaletto’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, this is the first performance for my by Mr. Casaletto. I would like to hear more.

A great story and mystery.

Well worth the listen. A peek into the start of the glory days of commercial aviation with interesting characters, a bit of a mystery to boot.

Love Airplane Stories

The twists and turns kept me captivated. I learned some interesting facts from this book!

Great book, terrible narrator

I loved this book but listening to this particular narrator was painful. He put nearly the same inflection on every sentence, so that he always sounded as if he were reading the exciting line of a kid's book. If Follet weren't so good, I couldn't have kept going.