From AudioFile
Ken Follett is a matchless storyteller, and this story is tailor-made for audio. With the selection of Michael Page as narrator, the result is choice. Dangerous Fortune is the saga of an English banking family. It follows the Pilaster clan through a generation in the second half of the nineteenth century. There are multiple characters of all ages. Page's British articulation differentiates each voice, displaying a wide range, from English-speaking South Americans to Londoners of all classes. Augusta, the treacherous matriarch, comes across particularly well. With Follett teamed up with Page, you can't stop listening. D.W.K. An AUDIOFILE Earphones Award winner (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Kirkus Reviews
Follett (Night Over Water, 1991; The Pillars of The Earth, 1989, etc.) peeks into the naughty world of late Victorian merchant bankers. A tragic misadventure among schoolboys is at the root of the rotten world of the Pilaster family. Weak bully Edward Pilaster and his too-dear South American chum Mickey Miranda cause the death by drowning of a lad from the lower form at their minor public school and then grow up to become as corrupt as one might expect. Mickey murders his way to a sinecure in the London legation of his nitrate-rich Latin American homeland, and, with much help from his gorgeous, manipulative mum Augusta, Edward bumbles his way to a partnership in the immensely important family bank. The only really good Pilaster, aside from discreetly gay Uncle Samuel, is young Hugh, whose father left the family firm, founded his own bank, and then had to commit suicide when the bank foundered. Hugh is a born banker, but since he's so much smarter than cousin Edward, Aunt Augusta hates him and throws constant obstacles in his path. Against Hugh's advice, Mickey and Edward team up on a series of huge loans to Mickey's government--money that goes to the purchase of war materiel and the advancement of Mickey's thuggish father. On this rotten foundation, the Pilaster bank grows to Imperial preeminence and Augusta gets the earldom she wants for the husband she dislikes. Hugh, pining for the Polish-born, Jewish bareback- rider he loved and lost and still nursing his childhood memory of That Day At The Swimming Hole, gets nothing but grief until those shaky South American bonds finally collapse and he's really needed. Interesting financial tips and a sprinkling of naughty bits, but the rest is minor Masterpiece Theatre. (BOM ??) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Review
"Political and amorous intrigues,  cold-blooded murders and financial crises...old-fashioned  entertainment!" -- San Francisco  Chronicle.

"Breathlessly plotted...relentlessly  suspensenseful." -- The New York  Times.

"Gripping, complex plot..  sexual intrigue...fascinating characters...you won't be  able to put down this exciting page-turner!"  -- Lexington Herald-Leader.


Review
"Political and amorous intrigues,  cold-blooded murders and financial crises...old-fashioned  entertainment!" -- San Francisco  Chronicle.

"Breathlessly plotted...relentlessly  suspensenseful." -- The New York  Times.

"Gripping, complex plot..  sexual intrigue...fascinating characters...you won't be  able to put down this exciting page-turner!"  -- Lexington Herald-Leader.


Book Description
In 1866, tragedy strikes at the exclusive Windfield School. A young student drowns in a mysterious accident involving a small circle of boys. The drowning and its aftermath initiates a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many loves... From the exclusive men's club and brothels that cater to every dark desire of London's upper classes to the dazzling ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the manipulators of the world's wealth, Ken Follett conjures up a stunning array of contrasts. This breathtaking novel portrays a family splintered by lust, bound by a shared legacy... men and women swept toward a perilous climax where greed, fed by the shocking truth of a boy's death, must be stopped, or not just one man's dreams, but those of a nation, will die...


From the Publisher
"Political and amorous intrigues, cold-blooded murders and financial crises...old-fashioned entertainment!" -- San Francisco Chronicle.

In 1866, tragedy strikes at the exclusive Windfield School. A young student drowns in a mysterious accident involving a small circle of boys. The drowning and its aftermath initiates a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many loves... From the exclusive men's club and brothels that cater to every dark desire of London's upper classes to the dazzling ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the manipulators of the world's wealth, Ken Follett conjures up a stunning array of contrasts. This breathtaking novel portrays a family splintered by lust, bound by a shared legacy... men and women swept toward a perilous climax where greed, fed by the shocking truth of a boy's death, must be stopped, or not just one man's dreams, but those of a nation, will die...

"Breathlessly plotted...relentlessly suspensenseful." -- The New York Times. "Gripping, complex plot.. sexual intrigue...fascinating characters...you won't be able to put down this exciting page-turner!" -- Lexington Herald-Leader.


From the Inside Flap
In 1866, tragedy strikes at the  exclusive Windfield School. A young student drowns  in a mysterious accident involving a small circle  of boys. The drowning and its aftermath initiates a  spiraling circle of treachery that will span three  decades and entwine many loves... From the  exclusive men's club and brothels that cater to every  dark desire of London's upper classes to the dazzling  ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the  manipulators of the world's wealth, Ken Follett  conjures up a stunning array of contrasts. This  breathtaking novel portrays a family splintered by lust,  bound by a shared legacy... men and women swept  toward a perilous climax where greed, fed by the  shocking truth of a boy's death, must be stopped, or  not just one man's dreams, but those of a nation,  will die...


From the Back Cover

"Political and amorous intrigues, cold-blooded murders and financial crises...old-fashioned entertainment!" -- San Francisco Chronicle. "Breathlessly plotted...relentlessly suspensenseful." -- The New York Times. "Gripping, complex plot.. sexual intrigue...fascinating characters...you won't be able to put down this exciting page-turner!" -- Lexington Herald-Leader.

FROM OUR EDITORS

In this extraordinary novel, master storyteller Ken Follett weaves a breathtaking tale set amid the wealth & decadence of Victorian England. A portrait of a family splintered by lust, bound by a shared legacy & moving toward a perilous climax.

ANNOTATION

In 1866, a mysterious drowning at the exclusive Windfield School for boys initiates a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many lives. A spectacular New York Times bestseller.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In his extraordinary new novel, master storyteller Ken Follett weaves a breath-taking tale set amid the wealth and decadence of Victorian England. In 1866, tragedy strikes at the exclusive Windfield School. A young student drowns in a mysterious accident involving a small circle of boys. Among them are scrappy Hugh Pilaster; his older cousin Edward, the weak, dissolute heir to the Pilaster banking fortune; and Micky Miranda, the darkly handsome son of a brutal South American landowner. The drowning and its aftermath initiate a spiraling circle of treachery that will span three decades and entwine many lives... Caught in the maelstrom are Augusta Pilaster, the raven-haired matriarch, strong-willed and sly, ever plotting to advance herself or her spoiled son, Edward, and gain control of Pilasters, the mighty bank that bears their name...Solly Greenbourne, the rich Jewish heir to Greenbournes - the only bank to rival Pilasters in power and prestige - who must battle the dirty stain of anti-Semitism in a still-intolerant nation...Maise Robinson, the beautiful and daring slum girl determined to be rich...Micky Miranda, the sinister hanger-on orchestrating an alliance of blackmail and murder to finance his family's takeover of a nation's government - a move that could rock the very foundation of Britain's economy. Over them all hands the shadow of the old tragedy, which threatens to shatter lives with the disclosure of a long-buried secret. From the exclusive men's clubs and brothels that cater to every dark desire of London's upper classes to the dazzling ballrooms and mahogany-paneled suites of the manipulators of the world's wealth, Ken Follett conjures up a stunning array of contrasts. Spanning the years when the British Empire tightened its grip on faraway worlds and revolution begot a tide of violent change, A Dangerous Fortune portrays a family splintered by lust yet bound inexorably by a shared legacy; and brings us men and women swept toward a perilous clima

FROM THE CRITICS

Bill Kent

Like The Pillars of the Earth, Mr. Follett's intricate saga about the construction of a medieval cathedral, A Dangerous Fortune reads more like an exercise in which the author applies the conventions of the plot-driven thriller to the historical novel. He delivers a silly, good-time read that for all its giddy leaps and bounds shows us little about the Victorians and the vital era they inhabited. -- New York Times

Library Journal

A mysterious drowning at a school in England in 1866 enmeshes the lives of several young boys in a web of treachery and greed. Set among late-19th-century British aristocracy, the novel follows Hugh Pilaster and his cousin Edward as they battle for control of various enterprises, including the family bank; Maisie Robinson, the beautiful and willful Jewish immigrant; and Michy Miranda, the smooth and manipulative heir of a brutal South American family. Follett, using the same basic formula that he employs in The Pillars of the Earth (Morrow, 1989), quickly gains the listener's interest in the characters and-by drawing upon personal experience-the world of British banking. Reader Michael Page has an excellent voice, even if he can't immitate South American accents. Recommended for public libraries.-Mark Watson, Southern Illinois Univ., Carbondale

BookList - Emily Melton

Follett's new novel isn't an espionage thriller; it's a historical melodrama with more than a little romance. But the author's fans shouldn't worry; they won't be able to put it down any easier than they could any of those spy sagas. The story is set in late-nineteenth-century Britain and tells of four boys involved in a brutal crime during their days at boarding school. Mickey Miranda, the cruel, slick, flamboyant son of a cold-hearted, hot-headed South American politician, has one overriding ambition: to make his papa respect him. Edward Pilaster, the weak, stupid, and easily led son of a respected banking family, has a taste for good booze and good times. Hugh Pilaster, Edward's cousin, is ambitious and principled, but his father's bankruptcy and suicide have left scars that may never heal. Antonio Silva is a compatriot of Mickey Miranda, but his family is less influential, and Tonio always takes a back seat to the flashier Mickey. Follett's story follows the four as they become adults, with their lives taking, as expected, quite divergent paths. But the four are always linked by the terrible secret they share from their school days, a secret that has the power to destroy them all. While many authors fail miserably when they ignore the old adage, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," Follett is one of those rare exceptions who seems destined to succeed no matter what he chooses to write about. In this case, an authentic sense of history, a wonderfully complex and fascinating plot, mesmerizing characters, and a thoroughly entertaining story practically guarantee that A Dangerous Fortune will head to the top of the best-seller lists.

AudioFile - Elizabeth Futas

Franklyn-Robbins doesn't change his voice for each character, rather he changes his breathing and tone. All characters are well conceived and convincing. An excellent production of a good book. E.F. cAudioFile, Portland, Maine

AudioFile - Diane W. Kazlauskas