Jackdaws by Ken Follett (Pan)

I just finished Ken Follett’s Jackdaws, and honestly, it’s classic Follett, exactly what you’d expect. The story follows Flick Clairet, a sharp British agent who has to pull together an all-women team to blow up a Nazi telephone exchange right before D-Day. Their first try falls apart, time’s running out, and the German counterintelligence officer Dieter Franck is closing in, step by step. It is a high-stakes, cinematic setup that keeps the pages turning through sheer momentum.

Flick is a capable, no-nonsense protagonist who carries the weight of the mission with a grit that feels authentic to the era. Her growth is tied to the necessity of leadership under impossible pressure, and her team, a motley crew of women with various backgrounds, provides some necessary friction. Dieter Franck is a formidable antagonist; he is intelligent and chillingly efficient, which makes the cat-and-mouse game work. While the characters follow established archetypes, they serve the purpose of driving the action forward without much stalling.

Follett sticks to what he knows works. The pace doesn’t let up, and there’s this almost surgical focus on the nuts and bolts of sabotage, logistics, and the ever-present risk of betrayal. If you’ve read his other thrillers, you’ll recognize the structure, almost like he’s following a formula. It’s efficient, it works, but you’re rarely surprised. 

I’d give it a 3.5 out of 5. It highlights the often-overlooked role of women in wartime intelligence, a topic that remains a relevant conversation today regarding recognition and leadership. My main criticism is that the narrative follows the Follett pattern so closely that the uniqueness of the Jackdaws themselves occasionally gets buried under the genre requirements. It is a solid, professional piece of work that honors the courage of the French Resistance, even if it feels like a familiar road.

We always talk about heroism in history, but Jackdaws makes it personal: how would you handle a mission with everything on the line and no time left? Our everyday worries look pretty small next to a Nazi stronghold, but at its core, the book is about showing up when it counts. Maybe we could all use that reminder. If you’re after a lean, straight-up thriller without the filler, this one delivers.

3.5/5