Product Description

Ken Follet-the master of suspense-follows his bestsellers Jackdaws and Code to Zero with an extraordinary novel of the early days of World War II.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #456091 in Books
• Published on: 2007-12-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

From Amazon.com
An old-fashioned tale of ordinary people thrown into the drama and danger of war, Hornet Flight is a rippingly good read. The time is 1941, and British bombers attacking Germany are being blown out of the sky in horrific numbers. How do the Nazis know they're coming? The answer is an infant technology called radar, and the Brits--with help from the Danish Resistance--must figure out how and where the German radar stations operate.

Follett, an old pro at World War II storytelling, vividly evokes the period, creating a sense not of historical re-creation but of urgently unfolding news. His cast of characters is memorable, including Harald Olufsen, a brainy 18-year-old pulled into the Resistance half against his will, and--typically for Follett--several central, well-drawn women. The plot does have some predictable elements: for example, from the time Harald first encounters a tiny wood-and-linen biplane called a Hornet Moth, half-rotted and stored away in a Danish barn, we know that it will heroically take to the skies. Then, when the very outcome of the war begins to turn on Harald getting a certain roll of film from Denmark to England, well... you can see where things are headed. But it's great fun to watch them develop, and Follett throws in just enough unexpected shocks to keep you off balance. Though it lacks the intensity of Eye of the Needle, Follett's finest and best-known book, Hornet Flight offers generous helpings of suspense and a climax that could hardly be more satisfying. --Nicholas H. Allison

From Publishers Weekly
Bestselling Welsh author Follett has made a career out of the WWII suspense thriller (Eye of the Needle; Jackdaws), and he hits the mark again with this dramatic and tragic tale of amateur spies pursued by Nazi collaborators in occupied Denmark in 1941. Harald Olufsen is an 18-year-old physics student who stumbles into espionage when he accidentally discovers a secret German radar installation on the island where he lives. The British do not know the Germans have radar and cannot understand why British nighttime bomber losses are so high. When Harald learns there is a fledgling Danish resistance group called the Nightwatchmen, he becomes involved through his older brother, Arne, a happy-go-lucky Danish army pilot. Harald photographs the secret radar site, but the spy group quickly unravels under the pressure of Danish police detective Peter Flemming, an officious, ruthless, and arrogant cop who hates the Olufsen family for a public humiliation his father suffered years before. The amateur spy network underestimates the police with tragic and deadly results, and soon Harald and his Jewish girlfriend, Karen, must plan a desperate aerial escape to get the photographs to England. Follett starts out fast and keeps up the pace, revealing how ordinary people who want to do the right thing are undone by their own enthusiasm and inexperience. He also paints a vivid and convincing picture of life in occupied Denmark, of easy collaboration with the Nazis and of the insidious, creeping persecution of the Jews.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Have the Nazis perfected radar? Intelligence analyst Hermia Mount thinks so, but a Danish teenager named Harald Olufsen has proof. If only he could figure out how to fly the creaky old Hornet Moth biplane to England.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Light Read
After reading Eye Of The Needle by Follett I was eager to pick up another of his war novels. I found this book to be slower paced, a little more predictable, and with lighter tones. It was still highly enjoyable and entertaining, just not one of his bests. I would recomend it if you are looking for a good old fashioned adventure novel that is a lighter read.

Good book, slightly too short
Good simle plot, charismatic characters, the vilain is good but not as good as in Jackdaws. I found that the end was a bit messy and it felt like the author just wanted to finish the book in a hurry. It's about 50 pages too short, the escape of Hermia from Denmark is pretty much forgotten, surely there was a possibility to turn it into something exciting, perhaps a last confrontation between her and the vilain would have been appreciated. Overall a very good book except for the conclusion, which will leave hungry for more. Jackdaws has a definite edge over his younger brother.

a low flying tale
Mr. Follett will always be counted on to produce a fine solid novel. I understand the main plot came from a factual incident and certainly is a solid idea for a novel. Intertwined with the German and Scandanavian officials mostly Nazi's at the time there is enough fluff around the plot to keep you highly interested. I do not read fiction to criticize the facts that may be missing but to accept and enjoy the idea of the story. I would highly recommend this book.