by Ken Follet
Published by NAL Trade Genres: Historical Fiction
Format: Hardcover
Published by NAL Trade Genres: Historical Fiction
Format: Hardcover
I loved this book! It is one of my favorites. This really is an EPIC book set in twelfth century England. How can a book about building the largest Gothic cathedral be so goods? Because it is also a story about good vs. evil and brother vs. brother. This book comes down to people. People who build, people with tremendous faith, people who are corrupt, people who love, people who cheat, people who lie, people who tell the truth. In essence it comes down to people being people in a time that was harsh, where harsh rules were in place, where class divided people, where religion was often law, where hard work really was HARD work. I could go on and on. Tom Builder wants to build a Cathedral. But where will he get the funds? Who will hire him? What hoops must he jump through? Philip Prior, raised in a Monastery finds himself drawn in and tries to always put the interest of the church first. The politics of it all. This book is HUGE. Do mot let that stop you from reading it. It is HUGE but rewarding and beautiful. The writing is beautiful and spellbinding. There are a lot of characters. There is a lot going on, but with that, I did not feel overwhelmed or like any part of the story took away from another. It takes a community and lots of people to build such a Cathedral. It does not happen overnight and we see these characters through it all. I was captivated and engrossed in this book. I feel that my review of this book is not enough. I don’t know how to say how much I enjoyed this book. There is a lot of history here and I imagine a lot of research took place prior to writing this book. In short, this book is 100% worth the effort. I found it did not take me long to finish it. I did not want to put it down. The beauty in this book is the writing, the characters and the character development. Would I have ever thought I would love a book about building a cathedral? NO! But Follett hit it out of the ballpark with this one. Sometimes the right story paired with beautiful writing can make any subject interesting, moving, affecting and a pleasure to read. Highly recommend. |