#1 New York Times BestsellerIn 1989, Ken Follett astonished the literary world with The Pillars of the Earth, a sweeping epic novel set in twelfth-century England centered on the building of a cathedral and many of the hundreds of lives it affected. World Without End is its equally irresistible sequel—set two hundred years after The Pillars of the Earth and three hundred years after the … of the Earth and three hundred years after the Kingsbridge prequel, The Evening and the Morning.
World Without End takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge, two centuries after the townspeople finished building the exquisite Gothic cathedral that was at the heart of The Pillars of the Earth. The cathedral and the priory are again at the center of a web of love and hate, greed and pride, ambition and revenge, but this sequel stands on its own. This time the men and women of an extraordinary cast of characters find themselves at a crossroads of new ideas—about medicine, commerce, architecture, and justice. In a world where proponents of the old ways fiercely battle those with progressive minds, the intrigue and tension quickly reach a boiling point against the devastating backdrop of the greatest natural disaster ever to strike the human race—the Black Death.
Three years in the writing and nearly eighteen years since its predecessor, World Without End is a “well-researched, beautifully detailed portrait of the late Middle Ages” (The Washington Post) that once again shows that Ken Follett is a masterful author writing at the top of his craft.
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A vicarious trip to the middle ages with complex, interesting people.
Pillars of the Earth and World Without End are wonderful, well-written, well-researched sagas of Early Europe. The characters are well-developed. This pair is far better than quality than Follet’s recent formulaic modern-era sagas.
Follett is always a good read
Not quite as good as the first book in the series. Pillars of the earth might be the best book I have ever read. World without end had a lot to live up to. I have already pre ordered the next book in the series.
Typical Follet – lots of characters, lots of things happening and all integrated into a story that you can understand and enjoy and that gives a very good view of that time period in Europe.
I firmly believe Mr. Follet’s novels give an exciting glimpse of a fledgling society as it may have existed in all its turbulent and gritty beginnings. It takes you on a journey through the desperate and dissident times of our early world. Architectural, Social and Historical foundations are explored and depicted in a most exciting way. This actually caused me to become thoroughly engrossed in the world of our ancestors. You can envision life for the people of those early times in both Pillars of the Earth and World without End. My long time and extensive interest in Medieval times, Archaeology, Art and Historical research have only been enhanced with the reading of these books.
Great book!!! I enjoy reading all of Ken Follet’s books and this was no exception. The historical aspect of the book combined with substantial characters made for a delightful read!
Loved reading the continuation of characters from Pillars of the Earth. If you like reading a story of long ago history, you will enjoy thus book.
One of the best books I ever read. I like the author for his imagination and writing.
Good byt not as exceptional as the first in the series, Pillars of Fire.
Along with “Pillars of the Earth” it makes for a fascinating read.
An incredible view of humanity, human nature and those the rise above the horrible things the world does.
I loved reading historical fiction that is accurate!
Historical fiction at its best
I was really glad to have read this and the others in the series. And I learned a lot about this time period
I love historical fiction and this book, like all the Ken Follett books I’ve read did not disappoint. Learn
More about history than ever before, even college history classes.
I LOVE this trilogy. This is the second book. A little romance, a little warfare, a lot of history of Catholic church (which I found fascinating even though I’m not Catholic), history of math, history of architecture (which is fascinating), history of medicine. It’s fascinating, and the characters are so engaging. not predictable, but believable.
Absolutely fabulous! So real-it took me to that time in our history.
One of the best books I have read. I learned a lot about the period and the life of the time. The people were interesting and credible. I recommend the whole series of these books
Good book, well worth the read. I ended up reading the entire trilogy. Great reading.