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Hornet Flight
Ken Follett follows his bestsellers Jackdaws and Code to Zero with an extraordinary novel of early days of World War II...It is June 1941 and the war is not going well for England. Across the North Sea, eighteen-year-old Harald Olufsen takes a shortcut on the German-occupied Danish island of Sande and discovers an astonishing sight that will change the momentum of the war. He must get word to England-except that he has no way to get there. He has only an old derelict Hornet Moth biplane rusting away in a ruined church: a plane so decrepit that it is unlikely ever to get off the ground...even if Harald knew how to fly it.
518 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 2, 2002
About the author
Ken Follett
394 books54.4k followersKen Follett is one of the world’s most successful authors. Over 170 million copies of the 36 books he has written have been sold in over 80 countries and in 33 languages.
Born on June 5th, 1949 in Cardiff, Wales, the son of a tax inspector, Ken was educated at state schools and went on to graduate from University College, London, with an Honours degree in Philosophy – later to be made a Fellow of the College in 1995.
He started his career as a reporter, first with his hometown newspaper the South Wales Echo and then with the London Evening News. Subsequently, he worked for a small London publishing house, Everest Books, eventually becoming Deputy Managing Director.
Ken’s first major success came with the publication of Eye of the Needle in 1978. A World War II thriller set in England, this book earned him the 1979 Edgar Award for Best Novel from the Mystery Writers of America. It remains one of Ken’s most popular books.
In 1989, Ken’s epic novel about the building of a medieval cathedral, The Pillars of the Earth, was published. It reached number one on best-seller lists everywhere and was turned into a major television series produced by Ridley Scott, which aired in 2010. World Without End, the sequel to The Pillars of the Earth, proved equally popular when it was published in 2007.
Ken’s new book, The Evening and the Morning, will be published in September 2020. It is a prequel to The Pillars of the Earth and is set around the year 1,000, when Kingsbridge was an Anglo-Saxon settlement threatened by Viking invaders.
Ken has been active in numerous literacy charities and was president of Dyslexia Action for ten years. He was chair of the National Year of Reading, a joint initiative between government and businesses. He is also active in many Stevenage charities and is President of the Stevenage Community Trust and Patron of Home-Start Hertfordshire.
Ken, who loves music almost as much as he loves books, is an enthusiastic bass guitar player. He lives in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, with his wife Barbara, the former Labour Member of Parliament for Stevenage. Between them they have five children, six grandchildren and two Labradors.
Born on June 5th, 1949 in Cardiff, Wales, the son of a tax inspector, Ken was educated at state schools and went on to graduate from University College, London, with an Honours degree in Philosophy – later to be made a Fellow of the College in 1995.
He started his career as a reporter, first with his hometown newspaper the South Wales Echo and then with the London Evening News. Subsequently, he worked for a small London publishing house, Everest Books, eventually becoming Deputy Managing Director.
Ken’s first major success came with the publication of Eye of the Needle in 1978. A World War II thriller set in England, this book earned him the 1979 Edgar Award for Best Novel from the Mystery Writers of America. It remains one of Ken’s most popular books.
In 1989, Ken’s epic novel about the building of a medieval cathedral, The Pillars of the Earth, was published. It reached number one on best-seller lists everywhere and was turned into a major television series produced by Ridley Scott, which aired in 2010. World Without End, the sequel to The Pillars of the Earth, proved equally popular when it was published in 2007.
Ken’s new book, The Evening and the Morning, will be published in September 2020. It is a prequel to The Pillars of the Earth and is set around the year 1,000, when Kingsbridge was an Anglo-Saxon settlement threatened by Viking invaders.
Ken has been active in numerous literacy charities and was president of Dyslexia Action for ten years. He was chair of the National Year of Reading, a joint initiative between government and businesses. He is also active in many Stevenage charities and is President of the Stevenage Community Trust and Patron of Home-Start Hertfordshire.
Ken, who loves music almost as much as he loves books, is an enthusiastic bass guitar player. He lives in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, with his wife Barbara, the former Labour Member of Parliament for Stevenage. Between them they have five children, six grandchildren and two Labradors.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,250 reviews
February 21, 2021
This was a truly outstanding book.
The plot and kept me turning pages and reading well into the night. It started out at a good pace but the ending goes at the speed of a fast jet.
I normally don’t like books dedicating separate chapters for multiple characters. However for this one it worked because the author wove the characters through the chapters.
I love how the characters were developed. And I also like how he was not afraid to kill off a character that may have been close to our hearts. In this way it kind of reminded me of what JK Rowling it done in almost everyone of her books.
For me is a retired Air Force officer it will probably be easy to understand how I would love a story about aviation. Well I especially love this one because it took us from Churchill’s bunker in in London, a little bit of Bletchley park, and a whole lot of Denmark.
I highly recommend this book and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did
The plot and kept me turning pages and reading well into the night. It started out at a good pace but the ending goes at the speed of a fast jet.
I normally don’t like books dedicating separate chapters for multiple characters. However for this one it worked because the author wove the characters through the chapters.
I love how the characters were developed. And I also like how he was not afraid to kill off a character that may have been close to our hearts. In this way it kind of reminded me of what JK Rowling it done in almost everyone of her books.
For me is a retired Air Force officer it will probably be easy to understand how I would love a story about aviation. Well I especially love this one because it took us from Churchill’s bunker in in London, a little bit of Bletchley park, and a whole lot of Denmark.
I highly recommend this book and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did
April 10, 2017
I start by giving this a 3.5*** rating. Not the best of work by Follett, but at the same time the man knows how to write an interesting WW2/spy thriller. This book is set in Denmark and we follow the Danish resistance as it attempts to help the RAF figure out how the Germans knew where all their planes were flying, and how most every RAF bombing run ended up with about a 50% death rate.
I think it is important to realize that this was the last of Folletts WW2/Spy novels, and you can see that by the way that he telegraphed a lot of the action, but nonetheless it is was a good and very fast read. After this book he wrote Whiteout which is set in Scotland and has nothing to do with WW2 and then begins his Pillars of the Earth series and the Century Trilogy both of which series were major departures for him.
Here we follow the exploits of a few members of the Danish Resistance, as well as Danish police and Nazi sympathizers who try to stop them. While there are some British involved in the action, most of this is about the Danish resistance and what they have to do to get information out of their country and over to England.
If you enjoy Follett, enjoy WW2 espionage stories and a fast read then this book is for you!
I think it is important to realize that this was the last of Folletts WW2/Spy novels, and you can see that by the way that he telegraphed a lot of the action, but nonetheless it is was a good and very fast read. After this book he wrote Whiteout which is set in Scotland and has nothing to do with WW2 and then begins his Pillars of the Earth series and the Century Trilogy both of which series were major departures for him.
Here we follow the exploits of a few members of the Danish Resistance, as well as Danish police and Nazi sympathizers who try to stop them. While there are some British involved in the action, most of this is about the Danish resistance and what they have to do to get information out of their country and over to England.
If you enjoy Follett, enjoy WW2 espionage stories and a fast read then this book is for you!
February 6, 2024
This was the first Follett historical doorstop novel I read: not so bad, actually! This one is set during WW2.
December 17, 2022
This is the first book that I have read by Follett and it was the audio version. I did not care for the reader, and this impacted my enjoyment of the story. I found the voices used and tone annoying. The entire first half of the book I was not invested in any of the characters. In the second half I did enjoy the story more but felt it to be a rather standard war novel with no real surprises. Peter Flemming was just written too one dimensional for me and towards the end he turned creepy as if I needed more reasons to dislike him.
July 5, 2021
While I predicted the villain would die horribly, I would have written it so the airplane propeller cut him in half. Any Follett rates at least 4 stars.
January 8, 2010
I've read only one other book by Ken Follett. It was Pillars of the Earth and I really enjoyed reading that one. I had high expectations for this and I have to say that I wasn't disappointed. It was my first spy novel, so I don't have much to compare it to.
Honestly, it was gripping and well written. The thing I like most about it, was the fact that Follett really does a great job with leaving out the details that your imagination can fill in. Where other authors might tell you all the details of Tommy's trip to the store, Follett just makes it plain and simple. Tommy went to the store, then he came back.
Hell, he describes a really intense reunion of two lovers in half a page!!
As far as the topic of the story goes, I really enjoyed it. He really made the Nazi presence in Denmark seem very insidious. Like they were slowly creeping in on the Dane's everyday life.
The characters were fun, believable and likeable, even the antagonist, to a lesser extent. I cared when bad or good things happened to the characters, as it should be.
Fun read. Good way to spend your half hour lunch for 2-3 weeks.
Honestly, it was gripping and well written. The thing I like most about it, was the fact that Follett really does a great job with leaving out the details that your imagination can fill in. Where other authors might tell you all the details of Tommy's trip to the store, Follett just makes it plain and simple. Tommy went to the store, then he came back.
Hell, he describes a really intense reunion of two lovers in half a page!!
As far as the topic of the story goes, I really enjoyed it. He really made the Nazi presence in Denmark seem very insidious. Like they were slowly creeping in on the Dane's everyday life.
The characters were fun, believable and likeable, even the antagonist, to a lesser extent. I cared when bad or good things happened to the characters, as it should be.
Fun read. Good way to spend your half hour lunch for 2-3 weeks.
February 21, 2015
The book had a library sticker on the spine that said "Adventure". It really was an adventure masquerading as a WWII thriller set mostly in occupied Denmark. It focused on Danish efforts to share critical (but nerdy) German military secrets with the British.....and of course the sadistic, collaborator police detective nemesis. There is a bit more technical information than I like, but it was entertainingly told so I have temporary mental custody of Hornet Moth flight control terms and radar detection methods. Exciting and adventurous, despite the sober wartime issues covered.
February 24, 2023
În timpul ocupației naziste Danemarca încearcă să pună bazele unei mișcări de rezistență cu ajutorul Angliei. Umilință capitularii este văzută diferit de către unii care preferă să-și realizeze interesele cu ajutorul nemților. Nu o să pot niciodată să-i înțeleg pe cei care au preferat să devină colaboraționiști.
July 19, 2018
Another excellent and exciting read from Follett
November 7, 2021
Nos encontramos en medio de la segunda guerra mundial, y los británicos están sufriendo grandes bajas en su parque aéreo, más concretamente los bombarderos. Sospechando que gracias a alguna tecnología de interceptación les están causando esas bajas, una red de espías en suelo danés intentará averiguar que hay de cierto en ella.
La sinopsis como tal parece sencilla, pero la verdad es que tiene tramas separadas que se mezclan aquí y allí y que están muy bien definidas, y que en todo momento mantienen la intriga y la tensión. De Ken Follet poco se puede decir que no se haya dicho ya, y todos conocemos su forma de escribir, y aquí no es diferente.
Los personajes están muy bien diferenciados, tanto los buenos como los "malos". Quizá tengo una pega con el policía Peter Flemming, que aunque como personaje es coherente en lo que hace, sea esto bueno o malo, las resoluciones a las que llega muchas veces me parecen forzadas, casi más fruto del azar que de la labor policial que tiene que ejercer.
En definitiva, una gran lectura con un sabor clásico a las obras de espías durante la segunda guerra mundial. Realmente recomendable.
----------------
We are in the middle of the Second World War, and the British forces are suffering heavy casualties in their air fleet, more specifically the bombers. Suspecting that thanks to some interception technology they are suffering these casualties, a network of spies on Danish soil will try to find out what is true in it.
The synopsis as such seems simple, but the truth is that it has separate plots that are mixed here and there and that are very well defined, and that at all times it maintains the intrigue and the tension. Little can be said about Ken Follet that has not already been said, and we all know his writing, and here it is no different.
The characters are very well differentiated, both the good and the "bad". Perhaps I have a problem with the policeman Peter Flemming, although as a character he is consistent in what he does, be it good or bad, the resolutions he reaches often seem forced, almost more the result of chance than of police work that have to exercise.
All in all, a great read with a classic flavor to the spy works during WWII. Really recommendable.
La sinopsis como tal parece sencilla, pero la verdad es que tiene tramas separadas que se mezclan aquí y allí y que están muy bien definidas, y que en todo momento mantienen la intriga y la tensión. De Ken Follet poco se puede decir que no se haya dicho ya, y todos conocemos su forma de escribir, y aquí no es diferente.
Los personajes están muy bien diferenciados, tanto los buenos como los "malos". Quizá tengo una pega con el policía Peter Flemming, que aunque como personaje es coherente en lo que hace, sea esto bueno o malo, las resoluciones a las que llega muchas veces me parecen forzadas, casi más fruto del azar que de la labor policial que tiene que ejercer.
En definitiva, una gran lectura con un sabor clásico a las obras de espías durante la segunda guerra mundial. Realmente recomendable.
----------------
We are in the middle of the Second World War, and the British forces are suffering heavy casualties in their air fleet, more specifically the bombers. Suspecting that thanks to some interception technology they are suffering these casualties, a network of spies on Danish soil will try to find out what is true in it.
The synopsis as such seems simple, but the truth is that it has separate plots that are mixed here and there and that are very well defined, and that at all times it maintains the intrigue and the tension. Little can be said about Ken Follet that has not already been said, and we all know his writing, and here it is no different.
The characters are very well differentiated, both the good and the "bad". Perhaps I have a problem with the policeman Peter Flemming, although as a character he is consistent in what he does, be it good or bad, the resolutions he reaches often seem forced, almost more the result of chance than of police work that have to exercise.
All in all, a great read with a classic flavor to the spy works during WWII. Really recommendable.
November 30, 2012
Hornet Flight is a fast-paced WWII thriller that centers on the adventures of Harald Olufson, an industrious, self-sacrificing Danish youth of eighteen, a classic Scandinavian blond with an ingrained love of tinkering with engines and getting things to work. It is this particular characteristic that drives the story forward. Harald is about to undertake a serious mission for the Allies that will have serious repercussions for the war effort. Harald must deliver sensitive photos of an ultra-secret German radar tower located on the Jutland Peninsula to England by flying a dusty, broken-down old Hornet Moth biplane across the North Sea. And all without flying lessons. Along the way, we meet many interesting, well-developed characters such as Reverend Olufson, his stern Evangelical Lutheran father, Peter Fleming, the fascist and frustrated police detective, and Hermia Mount, the courageous MI6 operative who is also in love with Harald's brother.
At times, the action is told through the point of view of Harald, other times, it is throught the lens of Peter Fleming or Hermia Mount, giving us greater insight into their characters. But there is no question that the readers are pulling for Harald, who is a hero right up to the end. The action sequences are pure Follett, riveting and breath-taking. We experience undercover police surveillances all across Denmark, police interrogations, dangerous flight sequences, and the riveting power struggles between Harald and his father, Harald and Peter, and Harald and his female counterpart, the Danish-Jewish ballerina, Karen Duchwitz. But readers are also introduced to the brave men and women of the Danish resistance, who made enormous sacrifices to undermine the Nazi invaders and the sympathizers among them.
But above all, Hornet Flight is a testimony to the bravery of ordinary citizens who fought back against Fascism and refused to back down in the face of overwhelming odds. I wholeheartedly recommend "Hornet Flight" for its superb depiction of bravery under pressure, courage under fire, and love amidst the despair of war.
At times, the action is told through the point of view of Harald, other times, it is throught the lens of Peter Fleming or Hermia Mount, giving us greater insight into their characters. But there is no question that the readers are pulling for Harald, who is a hero right up to the end. The action sequences are pure Follett, riveting and breath-taking. We experience undercover police surveillances all across Denmark, police interrogations, dangerous flight sequences, and the riveting power struggles between Harald and his father, Harald and Peter, and Harald and his female counterpart, the Danish-Jewish ballerina, Karen Duchwitz. But readers are also introduced to the brave men and women of the Danish resistance, who made enormous sacrifices to undermine the Nazi invaders and the sympathizers among them.
But above all, Hornet Flight is a testimony to the bravery of ordinary citizens who fought back against Fascism and refused to back down in the face of overwhelming odds. I wholeheartedly recommend "Hornet Flight" for its superb depiction of bravery under pressure, courage under fire, and love amidst the despair of war.
May 10, 2020
I need to read more by this author
September 23, 2021
Solider Spionagethriller, spannend geschrieben aber die Geschichte wirkte arg konstruiert und es fehlte das gewisse Etwas, welches den Leser richtig fesselt.
July 7, 2009
I've been on a Ken Follett kick lately. He writes characters that I like, despite occasionally showing their stock-character seams. This story was especially good - Danish folks getting involved in the Resistance against Nazis, and the Danish police who are torn between doing their duty for their new bosses in funny pants or shirking responsibility. I had put off reading this because I have a hard time, in war stories, reading page upon page of descriptive on planes, trucks, guns, and the trappings of war. Fortunately, it was fine - I learned that the Hornet is mostly wood and linen (!) and didn't need to know much more to follow the story just fine. He even threw in some acknowledgment of the struggles women went through as they found themselves in the workplace promoted, for the first time, to the level of men. The book moves fast, and was the kind where whenever you find yourself with a spare moment, you want immediately to return to the world of the story. I recommend.
September 5, 2016
I'm a great fan of Ken Follet but in general, I don't like reading books set in twentieth-century wars (don't ask me why :D). But still this, I decided to read Hornet Plane because I'm a great fan of Ken Follet writing. l I have to say that the book was a great discovery for me. It's one of those books that the pages seem to turn on their own. I recommend it to fans of thrillers, spies, and course of novels set in the Second World War.
Spanish version:
Soy fan de los libros de Ken Follet pero en general tengo cierto reparo en leer libros ambientados en guerras del siglo XX (no me preguntéis el porque :D). Aún así tengo que decir que el libro de Hornet Flight fue un gran descubrimiento. Es uno de esos libros que las páginas parecen pasar solas. Lo recomiendo a los fans de los thillers, los espías y claro está de novelas ambientadas en la segunda guerra mundial.
Spanish version:
Soy fan de los libros de Ken Follet pero en general tengo cierto reparo en leer libros ambientados en guerras del siglo XX (no me preguntéis el porque :D). Aún así tengo que decir que el libro de Hornet Flight fue un gran descubrimiento. Es uno de esos libros que las páginas parecen pasar solas. Lo recomiendo a los fans de los thillers, los espías y claro está de novelas ambientadas en la segunda guerra mundial.
June 21, 2023
The books starts very promising, as a mixture of history, suspense, mechanics and romance. The plot is ok, although it could be solved more easily. The main characters are strong enough, brave and innocent in the same time, perhaps a little bit too impetuous and careless. As the action goes, the novels into a youngster's book, and the final is hardly credible, with fueling the plane during the flight, from a canister...
May 10, 2014
It was a great book about the resistance in Denmark! It also talked about Sweden's clandestine help in the WW11!!! My Father's cousin told me how they helped people go across to Norway They were in Arvika (Varmland). Near the border to Norway! I have visited many of the locations which were in the book, also making it special! Do read if you like Spy Stories about The 2nd WW!
December 1, 2017
no deep, understandable characters; you hardly realised how serious the situation in Denmark was back when the Nazis occupied the Country; everybody was freakishly lucky in the end
I read this for book club at university. None of the clubbers loved it unfortunately.
I read this for book club at university. None of the clubbers loved it unfortunately.
December 27, 2018
“Fear could paralyse. Action was the antidote.”
The only bad thing about this story, is having no continuation...
The only bad thing about this story, is having no continuation...
October 14, 2014
This is a book that takes place in occupied Denmark during World War 2 in 1941 and involves a German radar station and a network of spies trying to get the warning to the British.
The British are losing a high percentage of bombers, and it’s almost as though the Germans know where they’re going to be. It is thought that the Germans’ progress on developing radar can’t be the explanation, but a young Dane discovers otherwise. Getting the info into Allied hands proves to be dicey, because the young man’s nemesis – a Danish cop bent on advancing his career by unravelling the spy ring – is pretty capable of using the clues to identify his co-conspirators.
The best part of this book is that the cop is a somewhat sympathetic figure for a protagonist. He has been the victim of a professional exclusion that bypassed a promotion he had hoped for, and he cares for his wife that suffered permanent brain damage from a drunk driver, so he has characteristics that make him seem like a noble guy, but he is working for the Nazis in an attempt to change his professional circumstances, and that (combined with his effectiveness at uncovering those trying to help the Allies’ cause) makes him the bad guy of the book, but for the first ½ of the book, it’s hard not to have some respect for him until he lets his duty get the better of him.
The protagonist is also an intriguing person, a resourceful young man who rigs his motorcycle to work using peat as fuel. He and a classmate’s sister fix an old de Havilland Hornet Moth aircraft to smuggle the vital information to England, thus giving the novel its name, but will they be able to get away before the Danish cops and the German army stationed nearby catch on?
An excellent novel – although sometimes a bit unrealistic – that keeps you guessing, and with plenty of things that don’t go the way the reader would hope that they do, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end.
The British are losing a high percentage of bombers, and it’s almost as though the Germans know where they’re going to be. It is thought that the Germans’ progress on developing radar can’t be the explanation, but a young Dane discovers otherwise. Getting the info into Allied hands proves to be dicey, because the young man’s nemesis – a Danish cop bent on advancing his career by unravelling the spy ring – is pretty capable of using the clues to identify his co-conspirators.
The best part of this book is that the cop is a somewhat sympathetic figure for a protagonist. He has been the victim of a professional exclusion that bypassed a promotion he had hoped for, and he cares for his wife that suffered permanent brain damage from a drunk driver, so he has characteristics that make him seem like a noble guy, but he is working for the Nazis in an attempt to change his professional circumstances, and that (combined with his effectiveness at uncovering those trying to help the Allies’ cause) makes him the bad guy of the book, but for the first ½ of the book, it’s hard not to have some respect for him until he lets his duty get the better of him.
The protagonist is also an intriguing person, a resourceful young man who rigs his motorcycle to work using peat as fuel. He and a classmate’s sister fix an old de Havilland Hornet Moth aircraft to smuggle the vital information to England, thus giving the novel its name, but will they be able to get away before the Danish cops and the German army stationed nearby catch on?
An excellent novel – although sometimes a bit unrealistic – that keeps you guessing, and with plenty of things that don’t go the way the reader would hope that they do, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end.
October 6, 2017
I thought this was a bit of a feel good spy thriller. I listened to it on audible. It mostly takes place in early war time Denmark. I thought the most interesting part was thinking about local law-enforcement in a country occupied by the Nazis. In this case police are actively assisting the Nazis track down Danish spies. The book doesn’t actually go much into the dynamics of this reality. The Nazis are of course easy bad guys. And two of the relatively accidental spies are young lovers. Several of the spies are presented as quite unlikely participants in this daring profession who go along with the work because it is the right thing to do in a country occupied by the bad guys. The unlikely story of a man in his late teens and a woman in her early 20s repairing a small aircraft and then flying out over the North Sea to England is just part of the heroics That you have to accept as wartime reality. Most people who die in this book die heroically be they a good guy or bad guy. I would have to say that this is a relatively mediocre book for an author who has shown significant talent in other efforts. But even a mediocre book by a good author contains some entertainment. This was not an unnecessarily long book which is an asset. The TicTock of the full moon being counted down as the culminating event in the spy drama was a little too melodramatic for my taste. And the fact that our teenager could figure out how the German radar worked was a tad beyond my gullibility. What is the true story here?
February 16, 2021
Cautivadora narración basada en eventos históricos que pone de manifiesto algunos rasgos de la cultura danesa y honra la valentía, creatividad y fortaleza de carácter de los protagonistas.
_______
Captivating storytelling based on historical events that highlights some traits of Danish culture and honors the bravery, creativity and strength of character of the protagonists.
_______
Captivating storytelling based on historical events that highlights some traits of Danish culture and honors the bravery, creativity and strength of character of the protagonists.
November 2, 2011
This is another classic Ken Follet, a suspenseful historical fiction.
The book was excellent and worth the read, however, it is not an analysis I want to share.
There were a few moments of humor. This was for me, my favorite quote, between a classy English lady Hermia (seperated by war from her fiance) and her would be suitor.
"But you know I have to get in touch with my fiance. He is the only person I can trust to help us."
"Yes"
"And I'll probably see him all the sooner in consequence."
"That suits me fine. I can't compete with a man who is trapped in a country hundreds of miles away, heroically silent and unseen, holding on to your affections by invisible cords of loyalty and guilt. I'd rather have a flesh and blood rival with human failings, someone who gets grumpy with you and has dandruff on his collar and scratches his bum."
This is relatable to anyone that has ever dated a widow or anyone who is suffering from lost love - and has heard endlessly about the loss of the sainted partner who NEVER yelled, never had bad breath and who's shit definitely did not smell.
The book was excellent and worth the read, however, it is not an analysis I want to share.
There were a few moments of humor. This was for me, my favorite quote, between a classy English lady Hermia (seperated by war from her fiance) and her would be suitor.
"But you know I have to get in touch with my fiance. He is the only person I can trust to help us."
"Yes"
"And I'll probably see him all the sooner in consequence."
"That suits me fine. I can't compete with a man who is trapped in a country hundreds of miles away, heroically silent and unseen, holding on to your affections by invisible cords of loyalty and guilt. I'd rather have a flesh and blood rival with human failings, someone who gets grumpy with you and has dandruff on his collar and scratches his bum."
This is relatable to anyone that has ever dated a widow or anyone who is suffering from lost love - and has heard endlessly about the loss of the sainted partner who NEVER yelled, never had bad breath and who's shit definitely did not smell.
June 30, 2019
In The Hornet Flight, young Harald Olufsen, a physics student in Nazi occupied Denmark, comes across a German radar installation on his island. This radar equipment has been instrumental in the Nazis gunning down British nighttime bombers. Harald latches onto a Danish resistance group that his older brother is associated with. He gets critical photos of the installation and tries to pass it along to the British, but the police crush the resistance movement that he is part of. Harald, along with his Jewish girlfriend now must make a harrowing escape using an old plane to England.
Reading a Ken Follett novel set in World War 2 is like wearing a comfortable pair of shoes. He has an enjoyable writing style that is easy to read. He also creates compelling characters, which come across in this novel. The pace in the early part of the novel was a bit slow, but really picks up later in the novel. His villains aren’t your stereotypical villains. They have their own story and believable motivations. All together, this was a well written and fun novel to read.
Carl Alves – author of Two For Eternity
Reading a Ken Follett novel set in World War 2 is like wearing a comfortable pair of shoes. He has an enjoyable writing style that is easy to read. He also creates compelling characters, which come across in this novel. The pace in the early part of the novel was a bit slow, but really picks up later in the novel. His villains aren’t your stereotypical villains. They have their own story and believable motivations. All together, this was a well written and fun novel to read.
Carl Alves – author of Two For Eternity
April 17, 2011
Disappointing. Ken Follet is one of my favorite authors and I am an avid fan of historical fiction, especially anything aviation, world war II, or espionage. I thought this book would be an instant favorite. Although it is written masterfully as only Follet can do, the context/plot just isn't there. I feel the story could have been told in 75 pages. It's almost as if the rest of the book is excess weight- padding- to give the book that 'classic' feel that Follet normally does so well.
September 23, 2015
This incredible adventure, based on real facts, tells the reader about resistance in Denmark during the second world war. The characters are strong and determined, the plot is eminently believable and realistic, and the writing has all the mastery of Ken Follett!
Maria Carmo,
Lisbon, 15 August 2015.
Maria Carmo,
Lisbon, 15 August 2015.
July 24, 2018
I've been a long-time fan of WWII historical fiction. In particular, I like behind the lines stories of espionage. A very long time ago I read the author’s Eye of the Needle and liked it. I decided to reacquaint myself with the author’s recent work. I was disappointed. While the story had some good stretches, they were overshadowed by its defects. The story was: riddled with continuity errors and awkward passages, plot holes existed large enough to fly a biplane through, and incongruous events were used to spur the story along.
Writing was technically OK. Descriptive prose was better than dialog. Although, there was some needless repetition.
For example, I got tired of clichéd descriptions of the younger Olufen’s girlfriend's grace and beauty.
Action sequences were adequately described. Although, in places they verged on melodrama . Dialog, particularly inner dialog I felt to be awkward at times. Although, Follett did very well with the women characters, particularly Mount.
The book would have benefited from more careful editing. There were numerous continuity and historical errors. Frankly, for a very experienced WWII historical fiction author-- this is the kiss of death.
For example, Hermia Mount enters the Tivoli Garden with a suitcase to evade Detective Flemming. She does this by dancing a foxtrot and a polka in a dance hall with an obliging stranger initially under Flemming’s scrutiny. She then 'ducks' out. Does she perform both dances with the suitcase in hand? The suitcase appears hours later back in her hands in Kirstenslot. There she uses it to bludgeon a female detective into unconsciousness.
Another example is that the Wehrmacht veterinary unit bivouacking at Kirstenslot is described as being equipped with “Jeeps”. “Jeeps” were US Army vehicles. Production of them only began in 1941. In addition, the term “Jeep” being used for light, 4x4, vehicle had not yet entered the vocabulary at the time of this story. It’s likely the Germans had Type 82 Kübelwagens -- not Jeeps.
There is both sex and violence. All the major characters engage in sex. The sex with one exception, is unexceptional with a fade to black typically occurring after first base. The exception being the brief psychosexual scene with the threesome: Flemming, his mentally disabled wife, and a female police detective. (This kept the till then YA-ish story from being really YA for me.) Violence was oddly sanitized. Folks get injured, shot and killed, although there is no blood or gore. The author has a preference for fatal, fiery wrecks.
There were only a large number of characters, but only four POVs: Harald Olufsen, Hermia Mount, Peter Flemming and Digby Hoare.
Hoare only plays a minor part. Olufsen is a mechanically inclined, 18-year old, patriotic Dane about to enter university. He’s a Badass Bookworm . Mount is the British ‘brains’ of MI6’s “Danish Desk” running their Danish network. Her marriage to Olufsen’s brother was interrupted by the war. She’s running the Women Are Wiser trope. Her spycraft is abysmal. Flemming is a Danish police counter-espionage detective. He has a grudge against the Olufsen’s and a number of unresolved personal issues. In addition, he’s become a Nazi sympathizer as a path to professional promotion. He’s running the Les Collaborateurs trope. Despite being twisted he was either incredibly lucky or a super cop.
The story is vaguely reminded me of the book by Len Deighton Bomber. In a nutshell, young Olufsen inherits his brother’s mission to get photoes of the secret Nazi Radar to British Bomber Command. Then there is the The Great Repair trope with an escape from occupied Denmark with the MacGuffin photos.
I was most disappointed with how the story was plotted-out. Flemming was phenomenally lucky in tracking the Danish Resistance. Leads and suspects fell into his lap as he remorselessly ran down the spy network for the Nazis. Olufsen and his: beautiful, wealthy, Danish, Jewess, ballerina, pilot girlfriend elected to perform a harrowing air delivery of the photos to England in a repaired biplane. This was the most difficult solution to an escape possible. Infiltrating into nearby Sweden by boat or airplane and walking into the British Embassy in Stockholm would have been a lot quicker and easier. They could even have mailed the photos from a Swedish postbox to the Embassy from inside Sweden. And finally, it was too easy for the teenage, aerial wunderkinder in England to get the photos along with sagely advice to the highest level of Bomber Command brass in the nick of time. It was truly miraculous. That’s not to mention their getting a dream job offer from Winston Churchill himself. I frankly thought I might be reading a YA historical fantasy.
This story had some good ideas, but a bad handling of its sub-plots. There was the right mix of complications of: politics, intrigue and loyalty, but in some cases they were ineptly executed. In addition, despite having elements of a dark and edgy spy novel, the major sub-plot involving young Olufsen and his girlfriend was distinctly YA. Finally, there were several continuity and historical errors in the narrative. I slogged on just to see how many challenges our young heroes would need to surmount before like swans they mated for life.
Folks interested in better WWII euro-espionage, fiction should read Night Soldiers.
Writing was technically OK. Descriptive prose was better than dialog. Although, there was some needless repetition.
For example, I got tired of clichéd descriptions of the younger Olufen’s girlfriend's grace and beauty.
Action sequences were adequately described. Although, in places they verged on melodrama . Dialog, particularly inner dialog I felt to be awkward at times. Although, Follett did very well with the women characters, particularly Mount.
The book would have benefited from more careful editing. There were numerous continuity and historical errors. Frankly, for a very experienced WWII historical fiction author-- this is the kiss of death.
For example, Hermia Mount enters the Tivoli Garden with a suitcase to evade Detective Flemming. She does this by dancing a foxtrot and a polka in a dance hall with an obliging stranger initially under Flemming’s scrutiny. She then 'ducks' out. Does she perform both dances with the suitcase in hand? The suitcase appears hours later back in her hands in Kirstenslot. There she uses it to bludgeon a female detective into unconsciousness.
Another example is that the Wehrmacht veterinary unit bivouacking at Kirstenslot is described as being equipped with “Jeeps”. “Jeeps” were US Army vehicles. Production of them only began in 1941. In addition, the term “Jeep” being used for light, 4x4, vehicle had not yet entered the vocabulary at the time of this story. It’s likely the Germans had Type 82 Kübelwagens -- not Jeeps.
There is both sex and violence. All the major characters engage in sex. The sex with one exception, is unexceptional with a fade to black typically occurring after first base. The exception being the brief psychosexual scene with the threesome: Flemming, his mentally disabled wife, and a female police detective. (This kept the till then YA-ish story from being really YA for me.) Violence was oddly sanitized. Folks get injured, shot and killed, although there is no blood or gore. The author has a preference for fatal, fiery wrecks.
There were only a large number of characters, but only four POVs: Harald Olufsen, Hermia Mount, Peter Flemming and Digby Hoare.
Hoare only plays a minor part. Olufsen is a mechanically inclined, 18-year old, patriotic Dane about to enter university. He’s a Badass Bookworm . Mount is the British ‘brains’ of MI6’s “Danish Desk” running their Danish network. Her marriage to Olufsen’s brother was interrupted by the war. She’s running the Women Are Wiser trope. Her spycraft is abysmal. Flemming is a Danish police counter-espionage detective. He has a grudge against the Olufsen’s and a number of unresolved personal issues. In addition, he’s become a Nazi sympathizer as a path to professional promotion. He’s running the Les Collaborateurs trope. Despite being twisted he was either incredibly lucky or a super cop.
The story is vaguely reminded me of the book by Len Deighton Bomber. In a nutshell, young Olufsen inherits his brother’s mission to get photoes of the secret Nazi Radar to British Bomber Command. Then there is the The Great Repair trope with an escape from occupied Denmark with the MacGuffin photos.
I was most disappointed with how the story was plotted-out. Flemming was phenomenally lucky in tracking the Danish Resistance. Leads and suspects fell into his lap as he remorselessly ran down the spy network for the Nazis. Olufsen and his: beautiful, wealthy, Danish, Jewess, ballerina, pilot girlfriend elected to perform a harrowing air delivery of the photos to England in a repaired biplane. This was the most difficult solution to an escape possible. Infiltrating into nearby Sweden by boat or airplane and walking into the British Embassy in Stockholm would have been a lot quicker and easier. They could even have mailed the photos from a Swedish postbox to the Embassy from inside Sweden. And finally, it was too easy for the teenage, aerial wunderkinder in England to get the photos along with sagely advice to the highest level of Bomber Command brass in the nick of time. It was truly miraculous. That’s not to mention their getting a dream job offer from Winston Churchill himself. I frankly thought I might be reading a YA historical fantasy.
This story had some good ideas, but a bad handling of its sub-plots. There was the right mix of complications of: politics, intrigue and loyalty, but in some cases they were ineptly executed. In addition, despite having elements of a dark and edgy spy novel, the major sub-plot involving young Olufsen and his girlfriend was distinctly YA. Finally, there were several continuity and historical errors in the narrative. I slogged on just to see how many challenges our young heroes would need to surmount before like swans they mated for life.
Folks interested in better WWII euro-espionage, fiction should read Night Soldiers.
April 22, 2013
I can't understand why Follett named this thriller 'Hornet Flight.' Already from one third through the book we know it is going to end with a flight by the Hornet Moth and from half way through we know who will be flying. It would have been so much better if he had given it a neutral title which most of his other books have. The Nazi iron cross on the cover begs the question "why?" German Nazis play a minor role in the story and no German will be awarded the cross for valour as a result of events so its depiction is obviously a marketing ploy.
Characterization is quite good--especially of the antagonist Peter--and the provincial Danish populace and environment is credibly described. (But why did a Danish cat ever get to be called Pinetop?) The plot, built on an advanced radar installation in Denmark, is logistically weak since most English bombing raids into Germany would not have entered German airspace so close to Denmark. As with any good thriller the pace picks up as the story moves along but after the lengthy buildup I found the events in the last part of the book improbable--especially the takeoff and in-flight refueling segments. This book would have been so much better with a couple of maps and a sketch of a Hornet Moth.
This book is worth the read but it is not one of Follett's best efforts. I would give it two and a half stars out of five, but no halves are to be had so three it is.
Characterization is quite good--especially of the antagonist Peter--and the provincial Danish populace and environment is credibly described. (But why did a Danish cat ever get to be called Pinetop?) The plot, built on an advanced radar installation in Denmark, is logistically weak since most English bombing raids into Germany would not have entered German airspace so close to Denmark. As with any good thriller the pace picks up as the story moves along but after the lengthy buildup I found the events in the last part of the book improbable--especially the takeoff and in-flight refueling segments. This book would have been so much better with a couple of maps and a sketch of a Hornet Moth.
This book is worth the read but it is not one of Follett's best efforts. I would give it two and a half stars out of five, but no halves are to be had so three it is.
January 1, 2012
This is a story of the Danish resistance during WWII. The Germans have occupied Denmark, and the police, goaded by the Gestapo, are on the prowl for spies. Harald Olufssen is a student at a boarding school when he gets drunk and paints an anti-Nazi slogan on a kiosk in Denmark. He is led from there to a police interrogation to an active role in the resistance.Hermia Mount is a british daughter of a diplomat who speaks Danish and helps to organize the resistance. Peter Fleming is a Danish boyhood friend of Harald's brother who is a policeman and works for the Nazis. Karen Duchwitz is a Jew and the daughter of a wealthy family that lives in a castle outside Copenhagen. The finale occurs when Harald and Karen take her father's plane, on old model called a hornet moth, and fly it across the North Sea from Denmark to England, carrying pictures that Harald has taken of a German radar installation.The reader does an excellent job interpreting Danish, German and English accents and showing the feelings behind the characters.
December 23, 2012
A good story based partly on fact. Set in Denmark in 1941, the protagonist, 19 year old Harald Olufsen stumbles across a German radar system on the Danish Island of Sande. This experimental radar installation enables the Germans to pinpoint the flight of the allied bombers early and to direct the Luffwaffe fighters to their target accurately. As a result the allies lose an unacceptably large number of bombers. With London trying to get information from the Danish contacts of Hermia Mount, and the beginnings of the Danish resistance trying to send information to London impeded by a pro-Nazi Danish policeman, the situation is fraught. Harald is a schoolboy with an interest in physics, but no experience in undercover work. But he is dragged into this highly dangerous work. It makes for a good tense thriller, and provides some insight into how the Danes behaved during their occupation.
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