Eye of the Needle book review

Ken Follett’s best-selling 1978 novel, Eye of the Needle, is a page-turning story about espionage and illicit romance during World War II. Here’s our Eye of the Needle book review and book banter.

1978’s Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett is a thrilling, spine-tingling, page-turning novel about secret agent surveillance, espionage, and reconnaissance, along with some spicy but illicit romance during World War II.

In the early 1940’s, a ruthless and elusive German spy, known as ‘The Needle’, obtained photos that could help Germany win the war. To stop him from getting those photos to the top German leadership, England’s MI5 is on a desperate race to catch ‘The Needle’.

The shrewd German agent feels the heat closing in, so he steals a boat to evade MI5. His plan is to rendezvous with a German U-boat, and turn in his evidence.

However, a catastrophic storm intervenes. His stolen boat crashes on the cliffs of an island lighthouse, where he seeks shelter.

Fortunately for the German agent, helpful husband-and-wife caretakers from England gave the shipwrecked victim food and shelter. Together, they nursed him back to health.

This is a part of the plot that seemed a little too conveniently contrived to me. The couple was unhappily married, mostly because the handicapped husband refused to have relations with his beautiful wife.

So, of course, this beguiling young woman felt hurt, lonely, and craved affection. And, of course, the shipwrecked survivor, who was the dangerous but intriguing German agent, felt a strong attraction.

Together, they had lots of time to build tension, which they both surrendered to when the whole family was asleep. Of course, the husband never noticed (or maybe he did), and didn’t complain when the wife left their bed to visit the very single survivor. To me, that scenario sounds hard-to-believe.

From there, the tension continues to build. MI5 is closing in, and the German U-boat is in the vicinity. All that needs to happen now is for the German agent to get his evidence and himself onto the U-boat and save the war for Germany.

As you can imagine, the last third of this book is filled with tension and unpredictable human emotions. I have to confess that despite the contrived relationships on this island, I was hooked—I could not stop reading!

Unfortunately, that’s all I’m willing to reveal about this best-selling novel from 1978. I don’t want to spoil the fun for you as you read this spell-binding novel of espionage and illicit romance.

Even though Eye of the Needle is a fictional novel, the author immersed his made-up characters into the actual events of World War II.

I learned more about the actual war-time sentiments of the people in England and throughout Europe. In addition, I learned about the sacrifices they all had to make to survive during that long, difficult world war.

And, I was also surprised to learn that current news about the progress of the Allies against the Germans was very difficult to obtain for people in Europe. Accurate information, along with vital supplies, were in short supply.

This is a trailer for the 1981 film adaptation of Eye of the Needle. Spoiler alert: some of the excerpts in this trailer do reveal some crucial parts of the plot.

Some of the characters in this story felt really genuine—almost as if they had actually existed. A few other characters, though, seemed contrived and unbelievable. Not totally unbelievable, but I felt that some of the contrived characters had weakened the storyline.

Henry Faber was the successful but ruthlessly professional German agent. He was the one who obtained photos that might swing the fighting into the German’s favor.

This guy was very believable as a secret agent. He was mostly a loner, but that was out of necessity. As a professional, he got the job done with little or no fanfare of conversation, and then disappeared. His cold, calculating behavior kept him alive.

The German spy’s favorite weapon, a stiletto knife, was easy to conceal on his body and was quietly lethal. His weapon earned him the nickname of ‘The Needle’ among the MI5 agents.

Mr. Percival Godliman was a studious nerd who taught history in England. But, during the war, he helped MI5 as an intelligence officer.

His mission was to track and intercept ‘The Needle’ before he could rendezvous with the Germans. He didn’t have the charisma of ‘James Bond‘, but that’s what added to his realism. I really liked this character!

Fred Bloggs assisted agent Godliman as they pursued ‘The Needle’ during WWII. This agent was also very quirky, but also very heroic.

I felt that his quirkiness helped make him a believable character, just like the Percival Godliman character. And, Bloggs played an integral part of the ending, which I felt was a little contrived, but still good!

In additional to Godliman and Bloggs, there were also other MI5 agents. Together, their work was meticulous, and realistic to me as a reader. I really enjoyed each of the MI5 characters, and it was interesting how they did their jobs.

Mr. Rose became paralyzed and was confined to a wheelchair. Previously, he had been an RAF pilot for England.

Because of his disability, he was frustrated that he couldn’t do more for the war effort. Instead, he and his wife, Lucy Rose, had accepted a job on lonely Storm Island as caretakers.

Unfortunately, I felt the author mischaracterized this character. To me, David Rose seemed very brave, unselfish, and willing to fight for England’s success.

He wasn’t really a complainer, and didn’t feel sorry for himself. However, that’s not how the author portrayed him, which made that character a little less genuine.

David’s wife, Lucy Rose, was a dutiful wife and took her marriage vows seriously. However, she had considered leaving David, because her husband wasn’t intimate with her, and also seemed cold and distant.

Because she was pretty, she caught the eye of the shipwrecked passenger, who she later discovered was a notorious German spy. Would Lucy remain faithful to her husband, and would she also do what she could to fight the Germans?

Those questions are a big part of this story, so I won’t reveal more!

Of course, there are also many secondary characters. Fortunately, I found most of them to be interesting and compelling, but I won’t list them all here. If I reveal too much, I’m afraid I’ll ruin the storyline for you.

I didn’t see the movie, but it does look good. However, I always enjoy reading the book first. While reading, I’m able to create my own visuals, but this scene matched my visuals pretty closely!

FINAL VERDICT

Unfortunately, the author misrepresented the disabled David Rose character. Sure, I know, it’s a fictional story. But, I read all the things that David did, even while he was disabled, and I was really impressed with him. I didn’t think he was resentful at all.

However, the author seemed to dismiss him, and made it seem like David was resentful. Sure, maybe he was a little, but he overcame incredible odds, and he bravely put his life in danger near the end of the story. There’s more to that story, but I won’t reveal it.

At times, the plot seemed contrived to make certain elements come together in almost an unnatural way. Specifically, I’m thinking about MI5 agent, Frederick Bloggs, at the end of the story.

I admit, the ending was good, especially where Bloggs was concerned. In fact, that was an emotional part of the story. But, I just wish it had happened more naturally. But, that’s just my opinion!

The author did a fantastic job of creating well-developed and interesting characters. I especially enjoyed the MI5 agents, as well as the background information for the ruthless German agent.

Plus, the well-researched historical background of the war effort really added to the realism. I was able to view World War II from the European perspective, which was extremely interesting.

Without a doubt, Eye of the Needle is an action-packed page-turner. The tension kept building, and I could not stop reading, and that’s a good thing!

Overall, this was a superb novel. It was suspenseful, and a real page-turning spy story about ruthless survival. If you like reading stories about espionage, especially when they are grounded on real history, then I think you’ll like Eye of the Needle, too!

Thanks for reading our Eye of the Needle book review and book banter. If you’ve read this 1978 novel, please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Content and photos by Doug Martin and Our Book Banter