Whiteout (Follett novel)

Whiteout (English original title Whiteout ) is a novel by Ken Follett, was published in 2005 (AKA 2004).

Action

In a Scottish biotechnology company, Oxenford Medical, dies Christmas Eve, an employee of the virus Madoba -2, a dangerous variant of Ebola with 100 % mortality rate. The employee has an infected rabbit smuggled through the security gates of the BSL4 high-security laboratories. The Security Officer of the Company, protagonist Toni Gallo, is under pressure, but may with luck and skill, calm and show the public that the employee has no other persons infected with the virus.

At the same time plans Kit Oxenford, the son of company bosses Professor Stanley Oxenford, the serum currently developed to steal from BSL4 where it is tested. He has £ 250,000 gambling debts and is stopped by his criminal creditors to pay off the debt with the theft. He has written the security software for the company of his father himself and plans to overcome with this insider knowledge all safety barriers.

After kit was stolen with rebooking tricks of the company in the past, money also for his gambling addiction, his then new safety officer Gallo was on the ropes and Professor Oxenford dismissed with a heavy heart his son out of the company. With the coup Kit wants to take revenge on his father and Gallo. After the incident, however, he wants to move his plan, since there is now increased attention, and additional security measures have been installed. His creditors decide but on the other hand, the coup is as planned rise in the night of 25 December. Kit is almost drowned by the ultra brutal Daisy, daughter of the creditor, to make him see it again.

At the Christmas party of his family kit steals the access card of his father, replaces the fingerprint data to it with its own pirates and the telephone system via the remote service access. He puts all appliances lame, only the attendant he runs on his cell phone around and pretending to be the Scottish Telecom, which oversees the system and is invoked in such a case for an emergency repair work. Kit wants to spend together as a maintenance team with the criminals and so penetrate. At the same time the alarm system is no longer connected with the local police, and security personnel can not contact.

Also Gallo is present at the start of the Christmas celebration at the Oxenfords to discuss with the CEO the morning incident and to observe the press reports. Is a deep affection that is suppressed by two different reasons between the widowed professor and Gallo. After the meeting, Gallo drives home the wintry weather begins to develop into a blizzard. But your planned vacation falls into the water, because they unexpectedly have to care about Christmas as a representative for their slightly deranged sister her demented mother.

While Gallo travels with her mother to her home, she calls for scrutiny by the security guards. Kit is already dressed up as telephone workers on the go and can not prevent the call. Gallo decides despite adverse road conditions with her mother to the company building, " Kremlin " called to go. As she struggles through the snow storm, penetrates the disguise kit before with his criminal accompaniment to BSL4. When you open the high security wing they are discovered, can overwhelm the security forces but.

Finally arrived at the destination, the cooling safe with viruses and sera, experienced kit a surprise. His cronies do not want the serum, but the highly dangerous virus Madoba -2. Fill the virus doses in a vacuum flasks, ready for a terrorist attack, and leave the Kremlin, just in time before Gallo, stopped by the blizzard and an accident arrives. However, the robbers will not get far in the deteriorating weather conditions and last seek the family seat of the Oxenfords on. Kit wants to steal the jeep his father unobserved, but this is not there, since the two housekeepers who borrowed this, because their own car is not designed for this adverse weather. You enter the house and Kit gives his company as a stuck snow storm victims. However, the deception is flying on and soon the criminals begin to overwhelm Kits family. Kit does not intervene and reflected later on the side of his criminal accomplices.

Gallo can find the first getaway car by an employee of the laboratory and call the various objects that are on the run route, such as a golf course and also the motel, where the car was parked, and breaks. On the way they stop to teach Professor Oxenford. Kit it receives and tries to rid of first. However, you notice that something is wrong, and flees before they can be overwhelmed.

Classification

Whiteout is a contemporary novel. Current topics such as biotechnology and terrorist attacks are addressed. The plot is clearly placed in the UK of the early 21st century. The book is typical of Ken Follett. The narrative is strongly oriented to the plot and reads thus very fluid, the characters are flat but installed in a clear black and white grid.

The book has narrative breadth, family relationships are presented. In the chapter by chapter, changing, narrative perspective and the inner life of each person is cut. The period described comprises three days, there are only short recaps. The result was a mixture of thriller story and novella, which several reviewers who have a pure thriller expected, led to criticism of a lack of voltage.

The components of thrillers and narrative are combined in most of Follett's contemporary and historical novels, the extremely short period of action of a novel, however, is very uncharacteristic of him. Even the used narrative technique of time-synchronous reporting in constantly changing storylines and perspectives with which he guides the reader through the three days, you do not know of him so far.

With the character of Daisy Follett has created an unusual character, a female, brutal fighting machine, without any brain, which has only enjoy their own violence. A character who is otherwise actually composed exclusively male, and where there is also the opinion of the reviewers separates, although Daisy in the book actually takes up only a minor role.

Filming

→ Main article Ken Follett Whiteout

2009, the novel by ZDF movie was filmed in collaboration with Network Movie and Constantin. The main roles are to see Oxenford Heiner Lauterbach Stanley Oxenford, Isabella Ferrari as Antonia Gallo and Tom Schilling as a kit. The 180 -minute film was first broadcast on ZDF as a two-part event on 25 January and 27 January 2010. It is also the beginning of a comprehensive six films by Ken Follett series on ZDF.