Never

A Novel

By: Ken Follett

Narrated by: January LaVoy

Length: 23 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times Best Seller

The new must-listen epic from master storyteller Ken Follett: more than a thriller, it’s an action-packed, globe-spanning drama set in the present day.

“A compelling story, and only too realistic.” (Lawrence H. Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary)

“Every catastrophe begins with a little problem that doesn’t get fixed.” So says Pauline Green, president of the United States, in Follett’s nerve-racking drama of international tension.

A shrinking oasis in the Sahara Desert; a stolen US Army drone; an uninhabited Japanese island; and one country’s secret stash of deadly chemical poisons: all these play roles in a relentlessly escalating crisis.

Struggling to prevent the outbreak of world war are a young woman intelligence officer; a spy working undercover with jihadists; a brilliant Chinese spymaster; and Pauline herself, beleaguered by a populist rival for the next president election.

Never is an extraordinary novel, full of heroines and villains, false prophets and elite warriors, jaded politicians and opportunistic revolutionaries. It brims with cautionary wisdom for our times, and delivers a visceral, heart-pounding story that transports listeners to the brink of the unimaginable.

©2021 Ken Follett (P)2021 Penguin Audio

January LaVoy mastered every voice. Fantastic job!

story was too, too, although I would have been happy with just Abdul and Kia's story.

The Guns of August?

Its’ OK, not one of Follett’s best efforts. The book is really two books, one about human trafficking in the third world, and the second, a novelist’s rendition of the Guns of August, set in present day.

The human trafficking story can’t really survive on its own as quality fiction, but it does relate to those of us in the developed world, how short, hard, and violent, life remains for half the planet caught in the third world.

The Guns of August Story is more interesting to examine. For those unfamiliar with the Guns of August, it is an historical book about how WWI started despite everyone’s best efforts to prevent it. JFK was reportedly enamored with the volume during his Presidency, using it to ensure that he did not fall into the same trap with the USSR. History however, records that it was Khrushchev and not Kennedy, who had the courage to back down publicly, and prevent WWIII, while getting the concessions he really wanted on the sly. It likely cost him his leadership role in the USSR, but it saved us all. I'm sure some will argue with me there, but if so, read The Cold War by John Lewis Gaddis.

Follett’s present day Cuban Missile Crisis storyline documents well, how utilizing the “reasonable man” theory in estimating the reactions of your national counterparts falls apart quickly, once hostilities have broken out, leading to inevitable escalation. Each leader believes his/her counterpart will back down once he/she finishes this last round of escalation proving his/her superiority in the conflict. People don’t act rationally to violent situations, and the real courage is in being able to stop. The book is excellent here.

Unfortunately, the book lacks both an in-depth understanding of the Chinese persona, or world view, and solid research into military capabilities and countermeasures. Also, all the females in the story, including the female US President, seem preoccupied with sex and relationships – despite the fact there isn’t a sex scene in the whole book.

The Chinese are portrayed as reincarnations of Russian commissars from the USSR. Having worked with them for ten years, they are far more pragmatic and educated. The perception is, “Why blow up the world, when you can obtain it in one piece through peaceful economic expansion”. The “one-child policy” alone, also means that any son lost in violent conflict means the entire lineage is lost. One should meet a few PRC communist officials before one writes books about their reactions. I thought the portrayals were weak. I don’t know the South Koreans as well, but I sense their portrayal was equally American/European perception.

One of the things that made the early Clancy books so authentic, was his in-depth understanding of military capabilities and protocols across the globe. Follett’s descriptions are thin, and there are numerous mistakes in tactics and capabilities. For example, the PAC3 missile system which is part of a layered US layered missile defense system prefers low trajectories, it is ballistic trajectories that make it miss – a vertical drop at high speed. The North Koreans don’t have MARV warhead capabilities, etcetera, etcetera. The lack of understanding and research into the military aspects of the book, tend to weaken the believability of the escalating violence.

Lastly, it has been my experience that powerful people are not overly indulged in their personal relationships, and/or sex life, other than as a diversion from real power. It is Creative Writing 101 character development, rather than looking at the real motivators for world leaders.

Carpe Diem

Ken Follett is among my favorite authors. I loved the story - it kept me alert. The voice of the narrator is warm and pleasant. I loved the characters Tamara and Abdul and felt happy for each of them.

Kept me awake

This is a very disturbing story, mainly because it seems so plausible. My only issue with the book is that the Africa part of the story was only tangentially related to the China/Korea part. Either could have stood alone.

WOW! just wow!!!

I have read most of Ken Follets books. I love his historical fiction, so I was worried that this would be too different, bit oh my gosh. I wish it didn't have to end.

Ken Follet is a master story teller but.....

At first I was dissapointed by this book thinking there were too many locations and people and things not making sense.
When it all started coming together I remembered again what a Master at his trade Follet is.
This is not an easy tale to read/listen to or take in.

Non-stop listen for me

Intricate and compelling characters / storylines. Could have done without indulged presidential brat. Narrator LaVoy excellent as usual.

Looking forward to the sequel!

Wow! What a great book. The story and characters were so real. The emotions that, so true to life. The details, perfect. And the performance was magnificent.
I listen while driving and I have bad ears so some performances/productions are impossible to listen to as the performer uses volume to indicate tense or excited emotional moments. Listening to Never I didn’t miss a word and the tension and emotion were incredible.
Another Follett masterpiece and a performance of equal matching skill.

Something we all fear. Ken Follett is amazing!

Something we all have thought about and this has now been put into words. Enjoy!

Not up to his usual excellence

I hoped I would like this but was somewhat disappointed with how predictable I found it. I won’t hold this against Mr Follett who has provided our family endless hours of suspenseful entertainment and lively discussions. The narrator was excellent.