One enemy spy knows the secret of the Allies’ greatest deception, a brilliant aristocrat and ruthless assassin—code name: “The Needle”—who holds the key to the ultimate Nazi victory.

Only one person stands in his way: a lonely Englishwoman on an isolated island, who is coming to love the killer who has mysteriously entered her life.

Ken Follett’s unsurpassed and unforgettable masterwork of suspense, intrigue, and dangerous machinations of the human heart.

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Listening Length	9 hours and 16 minutes
Author	Ken Follett
Narrator	Eric Lincoln
Whispersync for Voice	Ready
Audible.com Release Date	May 13, 2008
Publisher	Brilliance Audio
Program Type	Audiobook
Version	Unabridged
Language	English
ASIN	B0019HXPDC
Best Sellers Rank	#2,966 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) #9 in Historical Thrillers (Audible Books & Originals) #46 in Espionage Thrillers (Audible Books & Originals) #126 in Historical Thrillers (Books)

Customer reviews

5 star		71%
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2 star		1%
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Top reviews from the United States

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Kindle Customer

Not Your Ordinary War Novel

Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2019

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How did I ever miss this?? I've read Pillars of the Earth and some others by Follet. Pillars was terrific, but very long. Eye of the Needle was simply fantastic. Planning for D-Day so the German leaders think it will not be at Normandy... A spy novel unlike any other I have ever read. I was glued to it for three days and couldn't stand putting it down to do normal life things. The last 15% was suspense like few books I have ever read. Some of the (real) history I never knew...the fictionalized story was magnificent writing. I did stop and look some things up, especially during the first 20% or so. By the 60% mark or thereabouts, I was reading at a breakneck pace. I knew Follett was talented but this was amazing. If you like stories set in World War II, spy stories, war stories, or anything with terrific characters that the reader really cares about, you must read this. All my friends, put this on your "to read" list right now.

83 people found this helpful

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Jephy

Best WWII Spy Novel

Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2019

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I think "The Brenner Assignment" (O'Donnell) is the only World War II spy story that can hold a candle to this superiorly written novel. 'Brenner' is a true story, however, so it is a must-read for WWII spy enthusiasts for different reasons. "Eye of the Needle" is captivating and realistic fiction: I don't know much about mid-century London, but felt I was living in it reading 'Eye".
Nothing not to love! I will note, however, that there's a load of foreshadowing here, so if you find yourself wondering why, for example [SPOILER] so much detail is given to the AC-as-opposed-to-DC generator in the cottage (p.48), then you aren't the only one who knows this'll come back 'round! (Follett did get the AC/DC mixed up, BTW, as others have noted.) Don't miss!

26 people found this helpful

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Locked&Loaded

Great introduction to Ken Follett

Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2017

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Great introduction to Ken Follett, who has become on of our finest writers. I believe I've now read most everything he's published, but this was my introduction to Follett and as a German-born American, it captured my imagination from the first page. Even knowing from history that 'Die Nadle' did not accomplish what he set out to do does not make this less mesmerizing. The movie with Kate Nelligan and the incomparable Donald Sutherland actually captures the book quite well, but read it before you rent the movie.

44 people found this helpful

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One of the best spy novels I've ever read

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2019

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British author Ken Follett is best known to a wide public these days for the Kingsbridge Trilogy, his mammoth multi-generational account of an English cathedral town. Together, the three books run to nearly 3,000 pages. They've reportedly sold more than 80 million copies around the world.

But that's only half of the 160 million books Follett has sold since the publication of his first novel in 1974. And he has been topping the bestseller lists ever since the publication of his classic WWII spy novel, The Eye of the Needle, in 1978. The book sold 10 million copies, and it frequently appears on lists of the all-time best spy novels. So it's no surprise that Penguin has brought out a 40th-anniversary edition of the novel. It fully deserves all the attention it gets.

The Double-Cross Committee and a fictional army

The opening scenes in Eye of the Needle take place in August 1940, following the Nazi invasion of France and the Low Countries and shortly before the Battle of Britain began. The story wraps up in June 1944, days before the Normandy Invasion.

Two of the most fascinating inventions of World War II figure prominently in Eye of the Needle. One is the XX Committee, or Twenty Committee, otherwise sometimes know as the Double-Cross Committee, which was entirely real. The other was not real at all: the fictional First United States Army Group under General George S. Patton, or FUSAG. Together, these two elements constituted what may well have been the most elaborate deception ever deployed in war. Thousands of people participated in this massive effort. The deception played a major role in convincing Adolf Hitler that the Allies' invasion in the summer of 1944 would be directed at the Pas-de-Calais and not at Normandy. Some historians credit it as decisive in the Allied victory.

A story securely grounded in history

Follett has grounded the story securely on the historical record—with the possibility of one major exception. Latter-day accounts of espionage in World War II contend that MI5 rounded up every single spy sent to Britain by the Abwehr. Some were executed by hanging. Others were "turned" into double agents and conveyed misleading information to their masters. So, Follett's conceit in Eye of the Needle that a German spy managed to elude capture for six years may be sheer fiction. However, it makes for a fabulous story.

A German spy, a classics professor, and young newly-weds

The action pits a brilliant German spy, "Henry Faber," against an academic recruit to MI5, Percival Godliman. "Professor Godliman knew more about the Middle Ages than any man alive." He had served in British intelligence in the First World War, which helps explain why his uncle, Colonel Andrew Terry, would recruit him as a spycatcher with the invasion of Britain on the horizon. It falls to Godliman to head the team that labors for years to identify Faber. A young couple, David and Lucy Rose, round out the complement of major characters. "Faber . . . Godliman . . . two-thirds of a triangle that one day would be crucially completed by the principals, David and Lucy."

How Ken Follett now views his classic WWII spy novel

In the Preface to the 40th-Anniversary Edition, Follett writes, "I was twenty-seven when I wrote Eye of the Needle. Reading it now I'm surprised, and proud, that I could do something that good when I was so young . . . Nowadays it takes me three years to write a novel. I wrote most of Eye of the Needle in three weeks. I wish I could do it again." So, Follett doesn't get high marks for modesty, but his pride is understandable.

10 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Lady Dido

Absorbing, comprehensive, educational, exciting.....what more could you want?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 23, 2017

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At last I have found an author to rival Robert Harris! I have been meaning to read a Ken Follett novel for years and finally decided to try out his very first book, written at the age of only 28. I am so pleased that I did.

The plot was fascinating and believable (except perhaps for one extremely unlikely coincidence). Whilst the story line and characters were fictitious, the background to the fiction was excellent and accurate. The research was meticulous - I could totally trust all that I learned about espionage and tactics in World War II. To be entertained and educated in one book is an ideal combination.

The main character was exceptionally well-drawn. I want to avoid spoilers so won't say too much, but the author demonstrated how you can hate, admire, despise and respect a person. My feelings swung from one to the other as the story progressed to a satisfactory conclusion.

Obviously, this review is many years late and so probably won't be read - but, if you see this and are wondering what to read next, do give Follett a try. He has written many novels and will keep you going for years!

27 people found this helpful

Appleton

One of my all time favourites. a must read!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 16, 2016

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I had this on my "to read" list for about 2 years, but kept delaying reading it due to the belief that it may have only been good due to the time it was written in... how wrong was I! This is one of the best books I have read in years, Ken Follett really knows how to build suspense and characters.

I also loved the setting and how much there is to learn about world war 2...

One of my all time favourites. a must read!

12 people found this helpful

Wife number 7

Great read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 12, 2017

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I didn't read for many years and then read this even though I had seen the film. Of all the books that I have read, only this one has ever made me jump out of my skin. Love it. Atmospheric and thrilling.

9 people found this helpful

mark crosby

Thrilling Chase!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 10, 2015

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It's World War 2 and a German agent working in Britain has succeeded in discovering one of the biggest
Secrets he'll find. Now he needs to escape and meet up with his rescuing U Boat off the coast of Scotland. Ruthless and determined nothing and no one can get in his way. It's up to a fledgling MI 5 with help from Scotland Yard to catch him. But they don't know what he looks like, where he's living or how he's reporting his information. All they know is a call sign. A needle in a haystack situation it maybe , will detective work and counter espionage be enough ? Great story ,tension built up nicely started to dislike the guy enormously found myself willing on the good guys. My hopes were dashed with theirs each time a plan failed and the agent slipped through their fingers! A great read and worthy best seller!

8 people found this helpful

Alan Williams-Key

One particularly annoying weakness was at the beginning a professor was recruited ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2015

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This had a fast moving plot but lacked any serious characterization: the protagonists were just names on the page. Also the plot had major weaknesses in the way it jumped between locations/events. One particularly annoying weakness was at the beginning a professor was recruited by the secret service to help find the dangerous German spy who is the eponymous anti-hero of the book. I therefore expected him to feature by using his intellect to find the spy in ways the other secret service agents were not able to, but this did not happen (indeed he hardly featured), and I am left wondering why a professor was introduced into the plot at all.

5 people found this helpful

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