Never / Ken Follett.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780593300015
- ISBN: 0593300017
- Physical Description: 802 pages ; 25 cm
- Edition: First edition.
- Publisher: New York : Viking, [2021]
- Copyright: ©2021
Content descriptions
Summary, etc.: | "Every catastrophe begins with a little problem that doesn't get fixed." So says Pauline Green, president of the United States, in Ken Follett's nerve-racking drams 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 presidential 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 read that transports readers to the brink of the unimaginable." -- jacket. 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. Pauline Green, the United States's first woman president, navigates terrorist attacks, illegal arms trading, and the smear campaigns of her blustering political opponent with careful and deft diplomacy. She will do everything in her power to avoid starting an unnecessary war. When one act of aggression leads to another, the most powerful countries in the world are caught in a complex web of alliances they can't escape. And once all the sinister pieces are in place, can anyone-- even those with the best of intentions and most elite skills-- stop the inevitable? -- adapted from jacket and Goodreads info |
Search for related items by subject
Subject: | Deserts > Fiction. Intelligence officers > Fiction. Presidents > United States > Fiction. Women presidents > Fiction. World politics > Fiction. Spy stories. |
Genre: | Political fiction. Thrillers (Fiction) Suspense fiction. |
Available copies
- 62 of 70 copies available at Bibliomation. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Kent Library Association - Kent.
Holds
- 2 current holds with 70 total copies.
Other Formats and Editions
Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kent Library Association - Kent | F FOL (Text) | 33410147735098 | Adult Fiction | Available | - |
Electronic resources
Publishers Weekly Review
Never : A Novel
Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
In this terrific international thriller from MWA Grand Master Follett (Eye of the Needle), President Pauline Green, a moderate Republican who's up for reelection, must contend for the nomination with far-right Sen. James Moore, whose macho talk appeals to many Republican voters. On the foreign policy front, Green wants to punish the Chinese for selling arms to terrorists, so she proposes a resolution against them in the United Nations. This is the first move in a political chess game between China and the U.S. that could lead to all-out war. At home, Green and her husband are having difficulties with their bright 14-year-old daughter, who's being disruptive in school. Meanwhile, in N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, CIA officer Tamara Levit is running Abdul John Haddad, a 25-year-old cigarette vendor, as a spy on the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. These are just a few of the plotlines Follett lays out in detail and then slowly weaves together as the stakes and the suspense steadily rise. By the final pages all is made clear, and the shocked reader realizes that the story hasn't ended, it's just beginning. This is a powerful, commanding performance from one of the top writers in the genre. (Nov.)
Library Journal Review
Never : A Novel
Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
In the Sahara, two intelligence agents counter drug-smuggling terrorists even as a young widow makes her unauthorized way to Europe. Meanwhile, an ambitious Chinese official goes up against his government's old guard, and terrorist attacks, illegal arms trading, and dirty politics push U.S. President Pauline Green into risky territory. Arguing that no government wanted to fight World War I--leaders instead got tripped up on alliances--Follett considers how world war could happen today. Follett's three most recent novels have debuted at No. 1 on the New York Times best sellers list.
Kirkus Review
Never : A Novel
Kirkus Reviews
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
A complex, scary thriller that feels too plausible for comfort. Republican President Pauline Green is trying to steer the United States through a dangerous world. China spends billions in Africa to extend its global influence, while North African countries like Chad are beset by criminals and terrorists. But that's secondary to the real problem: Rebels in North Korea try to overthrow the Communist dynasty and reunite the North and South, which scares the bejesus out of China. They fear the peninsula's reunification, "a euphemism for takeover by the capitalist West." The Chinese believe America and Europe want to destroy China "and would stop at nothing," so the last thing they need is a bordering nation with West-leaning sympathies. And domestically, Green faces "blowhard" wannabe president Sen. James Moore, who thinks there's no point in having nukes if you won't use them. Even her personal life is complicated: Her husband "was a good lover, but she had never wanted to tear his clothes off with her teeth." In fact, the first spouses are quietly drifting apart. Yet she "could not fall in love" with another man. "It would be a hurricane, a train crash, a nuclear bomb." Speaking of which, both superpowers have ironclad commitments to protect their allies, even if some crazy third parties get their hands on nuclear weapons. Will China and the U.S. be drawn into all-out war neither wants? This novel deals with the same great-power issues as Elliot Ackerman and James Stavridis' recent 2034, and both will give you the willies. Follett could have cut back on the North African subplot and delivered a tighter yarn, but then you mightn't have learned that "a helicopter glides like a grand piano." Anyway, that's Follett: You'll be so absorbed in the story threads that you'll follow them anywhere--and you'll suddenly realize you've read hundreds of pages. On one level, it's great entertainment; on another, a window into a sobering possibility. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
BookList Review
Never : A Novel
Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Follett, whose WWII spy thrillers Eye of the Needle and The Key to Rebecca were breakthrough bestsellers more than 30 years ago, then turned to historical epics (including The Pillars of the Earth). Now he returns to thrillers, this one set in the present day. Heavily loaded with political intrigue, the book proposes a terrifying scenario: spurred on by unrest in Africa, China believes the U.S. intends to use the upheaval there to launch a political attack on China itself. At the story's center is U.S. President Pauline Green, who's juggling threats both foreign and domestic (including a dangerous American presidential candidate). She is a realistic character, a strong leader in a time of worldwide chaos, and Follett has crafted a story that is politically complex and completely believable. This is a thriller, not a political treatise, so readers should be prepared for action and a certain amount of pyrotechnics, but the novel's major selling point is its absolutely compelling political intrigue. A smart, scary, and all-too-plausible thriller.