Perhaps, Coronation was as stressful and proud moment for King as the first day in deep recesses of mine, was for innocent Billy Twice. The strategic beginning impressed me as it brought the ordinary and exalted at somewhat the same level. However, in the Prologue itself, I was a bit surprised as the story began in a very peaceful way in 1911 in an understated mining town, where our first protagonist William Williams is ready to make his debut as a miner, on the same day as George V is to be coronated as the King of England. Since, the present novel is based on First World War, I imagined that the author is going to paint a grim picture of the dreaded battle, littering the narrative with blood and gore a la Red Badge of Courage. But, still he ended up doing a fantastic job. Ken has a limited canvas and has to restrict his imaginative characters within the well known boundaries of hard facts. It is a big challenge to write a Historical Fiction based on one of the most ruthless War ever fought. While randomly buying this 852 pages long eBook (partly due to its very low price) I hardly knew that I have laid my hands on a gem. I have just finished reading Fall of Giants by Ken Follett, a superbly written historical fiction.
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