Sunday, June 26, 2011

The Pillars of the Earth | Ken Follett‏

The Pillars of the Earth ~ Ken Follett‏


By: Jinan Al Harthy

A story of a man who travels halfway across medieval England in the dead of the winter, chasing his dream of building a cathedral, sacrificing his own fortune and well-being, and that of his family. As the story unfolds, generations are born, alliances are built and broken, and people are killed for lust, power and food.

Personal opinion: It’s been a while since I read such an intriguing book. The plot was great and the characters very credible. Don’t be intimidated by the size of the book (a whopping 973 pages!); it was a smooth read and a page-turner, although I think it could’ve been half as big and still just as good. There was some repetition at times and I personally skipped the parts where the architecture was being described. The ending was rather predictable and unimpressive, but that’s ok since I found myself holding my breath quite so often throughout the book. Definitely THE book to read.

My Rating: 9/10

I recommend it to anyone looking for a good read, particularly fans of romance, thrillers and historical fiction aged 16+

3 comments:

  1. Oh I'm so happy someone reviewed this book! I read it 2 years ago and I still remember how different and awesome it was. As you say, it's long but I love long books. The story it was trying to tell, was amazing!
    The characters were really good, and I actually liked the architecture parts :D

    Would you read At World's Ends though? I'm not sure myself I don't think it's gonna be anywhere as good as this but perhaps in a few years I might.

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  2. I loved The Pillars of the Earth so much I just had to run to Borders looking for its sequel, World without End. It's too early to form an opinion, but I can tell you that so far, both books are heading the same way. It's probably a good idea that you're taking a long break between both books though, to avoid an overdose of Follett :D

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