The English are spying on the rest of Europe trying to prevent Elizabeth’s being assassinated. Wealthy families are vying for positions with various religious factions to get political advantages. Mary, Queens of Scots, is her cousin, who is imprisoned and along with her supporters tries to unseat Elizabeth – an attempt which fails miserably for Mary and her followers. Queen Elizabeth rises to the throne of England while the rest of Europe turns against her as being too liberal and allowing freedom of religion. Set in the mid-1500s in Europe, the undercurrents of the entire book formed around the fight between the Catholics and the Protestants in gaining control over the thrones of France, England, Scotland, and Spain. I caution you that the paperback version of this book was just over 900 pages! It took time to read from beginning to end, but it did not take much time to get me hooked on the characters and the story. This novel, and others by Follett, are definitely worth it.

As you know from my prior reviews, I do not gravitate toward historical novels, but they sometimes fall in my lap and I find them interesting and worthy of my precious free time.

The first books in the series have sold 38 million copies – this book is sure to sell many millions more.If you have the time, I highly recommend reading this historical novel by Ken Follett. From the bad decisions of Mary Queen of Scots to massacres, to the plot to kill the King by Guy Fawkes and others, this is historical fiction that is gripping history anyway, but Ken Follett makes the book emotionally engaging with his fine characters. It is a book of ill-advised marriages and alliances, of people of faith risking all to spread The Word, and of Elizabeth precariously ruling from her throne with the help a small group of loyal spies. This is a book that has the horror of ‘heretics’ being burnt at the stake, of dangerous sea journeys and battles, and of royal courts and intrigue.

Several are dastardly villains, some are heroes, but most are people trying to make their way in the world during uncertain times, when religion and true faith, politics and scandals, revenge, power and love, were all driving forces for people’s decisions, whether good or bad. A Column of Fire is truly an epic tale that has obviously been meticulously researched, and the strength of the book is its memorable characters.

Ken follett a column of fire review