A Dangerous Fortune
by Ken Follett
Yes, this book is somewhat predictable and serves less as a mystery novel and more as a historical
drama/romance, but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed the novel simply as it was. It may also be a bit too
familiar to Follett followers as the model of storytelling remains consistent with his typical writing techniques, but
it also displays Follett's tremendous ability to set a mood and create an atmosphere that makes almost all his
books so hard to put down. The historical detail makes A Dangerous Fortune quite informative and it made me an
instant fan of the 19th century setting. The characters are, as usual, utterly captivating, and Follett has a knack for
making you sympathize with, root for, or despise even the most evil of characters. This book is the perfect
combination of historical insight, suspense, and romance all intwined in the 19th century setting making this a
book I would recommend to any reader, Follett fan or otherwise.|Muito bom! E atual, apesar de se passar durante
o século XIX.
Quem conhece o blogue sabe que adoro Ken Follett, daí não estranhar que tenha dado 5 estrelas a este livro no
Goodreads. De facto, o autor britânico escreve como ninguém e retrata com mestria cenas de época, indo ao
fundo das questões, envolvendo o leitor com personagens singulares, sendo elas bondosas, aguerridas ou até
mesmo malévolas.
Em quase 570 páginas percorremos 30 anos de uma depressão banqueira que muito nos faz lembrar os dias de
hoje, com investimentos que poderão soar-nos a jogadas muitos atuais, e que nos poderão ajudar a compreender
o porquê de algumas instituições bancárias mundiais terem ido ido à falência.
Dividido em três partes, (3 décadas) vamos acompanhando uma família poderosa de banqueiros, a família Pilaster.
Tudo começa em 1886 quando um rapaz morre afogado numa pedreira e as circunstâncias misteriosas da sua
Tudo começa em 1886 quando um rapaz morre afogado numa pedreira e as circunstâncias misteriosas da sua
morte nunca são reveladas. O incidente ocorre numa escola frequentada por rapazes oriundos de classes
abastadas onde se inserem Edward, filho de Joseph e Augusta Pilaster, Micky Miranda, seu amigo de juventude,
oriundo de Córdova. e Hugh, primo de Edward, a parte pobre da família.
Opinião completa aqui: http://marcadordelivros.blogspot.pt/2...|Things you can count on in a Follett book:
A strong male protagonist who everyone else is determined to make fail.
A strong female protagonist who acts in ways women of their time period just do not act, and doesn't give a
damn about what others think of her.
One of the above parties either rises from their low station or falls from their high station.
A nasty villain who does nothing, but bad and surrounds himself with powerful people who he manipulates to get
what he wants and to cover his bad deeds. He is rewarded handsomely for his bad deeds.
A meddling relative or in-law of the male protagonist who aligns herself with the villain to destroy him.
A gay couple who are in the closet about their secret. Most everyone knows of their secret, and don't care about
their preference, but use it against them to manipulate and control their decisions to suit the villains.
A few illegitimate children or two that are spawned from true love, but whose parents can't be together because
of the plotting of the villainous relatives.
Men who pretend to be gentlemen, but go whoring around at night and look down upon the women they use for
their gratification.
Too much description of the scenes described above.
In his writing Follett tends to repeat character descriptions that he already described in previous chapters. Usually
this is done from the point of view of different characters throughout the novel. Either way, it gets annoying. I
don't need to be reminded that so and so is from such and such town and has freckled arms four or five times.
Follett definitely does his historical research. His descriptions of the era he writes about are so vivid and a main
reason why his books are so engrossing.
All in all I like Ken Follett and have read many of his books. Even though they follow the same plot pattern
described above, I will continue to read them. However, I don't think any of the ones I read from now on will come
as close to being as well written as Pillars. Maybe this is because that was my first Follett novel?|Follett's definitely
got a formula, and here he follows it true to form. Unfortunately I thought it fell short compared to the others I've
read, like Fall of Giants, A Placed Called Freedom, and especially Pillars of the Earth. The good people are good
and prescient and precocious, the bad people are petty, vindictive, and rotten, and then.....crazy shit happens.
It's a formula, but he does it well.
However, the characters didn't live up to their WTF potential and the ending - as hilariously bugfuck as it was couldn't really offset the mehness of Hugh Pilaster and Maisie Robinson. I wasn't feeling the feelz for these mixedup, tragic kids like I have for others in Follett's oeuvre. And the villainess, Augusta Pilaster, really really needed a
more tawdry comeuppance than what she got. It kind of fizzled out and ended with a whimper rather than the
insane crackfest that was required and which I know my Kenny boy is capable of.
more tawdry comeuppance than what she got. It kind of fizzled out and ended with a whimper rather than the
insane crackfest that was required and which I know my Kenny boy is capable of.
I have not lost faith in my Ken. Merely a bump in the road. I remain loyal and smugly anticipacious of future
WTFery.|Podia começar aqui a adjectivar este livro, mas quem me conhece sabe que os únicos enredos que me
interessam são os das estórias.
Ken Follett é de facto um senhor contador de estórias! Este é um livro fantástico, com personagens excelentes!
Não vou opinar sobre a escrita do autor porque o que li foi uma tradução e acho um pouco fantasioso afirmá-lo
sem ler originais, mas posso avançar que o texto estava isento de erros.
Quanto à estória... temos um grupo de colegas de colégio que passam por um acontecimento que lhes marca a
vida, uns mantém-se unidos outros são obrigados a tomar decisões...