Ken Follett's "The Weapons of Light" stormed the bestseller lists shortly after its publication. In the fifth Kingsbridge novel, set during Britain's industrialization, people witness the introduction of new, often frightening machines that take over tasks previously painstakingly done by hand.
Ken Follett chose weaving machines and fabric production as central themes in “The weapons of Light” The total circulation of Follett’s German books is around 39 million copies. The previously published four Kingsbridge volumes have sold more than 9 million copies, according to the publisher Luebbe.