Ken Follett's Jackdaws a Pleasant Surprise!

In a tale of unlikely heroes, Jackdaws, by Ken Follett, is truly a work of art. When one thinks of our heroes of WWII, our brave women may not come to mind. The novel, Jackdaws introduces the reader to an all-female team of British agents sent to destroy an important telephone exchange in France, on the evening of the historic D-Day invasion.

At the stories introduction, our heroine Flick and her Resistance-leader husband attempt an assault that proves unsuccessful. Her partners are killed and those around her are unsure of her abilities as an agent. The new plan requires an all-woman team, none of them professionals, to be assembled and trained within days.

This plan requires an all-woman team to be put together and trained immediately. Obviously, besides Flick, none of these women are soldiers. Codenamed "Jackdaws," Flick leads our female protagonists on a near-suicide mission to deter Nazi Germany's plans of domination.

The story moves at a decent pace, only to take the occasional break to enhance various relationships in the story. These vary from Flick's marriage crumbling, to the relations between the members of her group. The true highlight of the story, however, is the character and main antagonist, Dieter Franck. He pursues Flick relentlessly (after nearly killing him in the opening battle.) He is an interesting character. The reader may truly begin to like him somewhat. Even though he's part of a monster regime; he comes across as human . . . especially when reminiscing about his family and children. Since Dieter, in my opinion, is by far the most intriguing character in the story; it is fitting that he closes the novel is a very unique way.

Instead of the author simply going for the gruesome killing of the "bad guy," to finish out a stories climax; Mr. Follett has taken a different approach. After the final battle of Flick and Dieter, you may come to believe that Mr. Frank has met his demise. In the spirit of not offering a complete "spoiler alert," let's just say it's an interesting twist; and one that's probably more horrific than Mr. Frank simply dying in action.

While Jackdaws doesn't redefine the genre, Follett's story offers a pleasant read. At times cliché, it still remains solid in its storyline. So, read, enjoy, and be amazed at the absolute bravery these woman portrayed to battle a monster.