Reviews with content warning for Death - World Without End

Reviews tagging 'Death'

World Without End by Ken Follett

16 reviews

rosietomyn's review against another edition

dark hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Revisiting Kingsbridge two hundred years after Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett's The World Without End isn't quite as impressive a read as it's predecessor.

While Pillars expertly weaves life stories that span a couple of generations, the second novel sticks closer to one generation of Kingsbridge residents. Although it would seem more likely readers would get a deeper understanding of a smaller cast of characters, this set felt hollow and less dimensional than the larger cast in the previous book. If this had been book one, I don't believe I would pick up book two.

The series as a whole is known for its violence, but book two feels especially brutal when compared to book one. Needlessly so.

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hmatt's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's hard not to rate this 5 stars. I read the first third of the book in Fall 2020, and barely picked it up again until late 2023 - most of it, I read in the last week. Even though many years had passed, I remembered most of the characters and their plotlines. The storytelling in this series is so incredibly rich, it feels like it is history. It follows characters throughout their entire lives, basically, so you really end up connecting with and either loving or despising them.

There are many, many graphic and vulgar scenes, so I can see how this isn't a read that everyone would enjoy. I feel that the author toes the line of "too much" and doesn't necessarily cross it given the historical context, but this is my opinion.

I'm going to read around this time period, I think (ahem, Wolf Hall), and then perhaps pick up the third book in the series which takes place 200ish years later.

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au3ke's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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koorte's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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melina_30's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring relaxing tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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goldenlake's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

It's very interesting reading a book that takes place during plague-times with COVID now to think of. Like the first book, I enjoyed this one quite a bit and would highly recommend it to anyone that can stand reading such a long book.

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siniandi's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

A densely packed story, drawn out over several decades as is typical for Follett. One gets invested in the characters and their fates quite easily. The connection of the plot to historical occurances is mostly well done. The central mystery is woven into the story skilfully while never overpowering it and is solved in the end in a surprising twist.

I commen Follett for always including strong female protagonists. Caris is a relatable, strong female character I emphasised with. However, I am having trouble placing her in the Medieval environment the story takes place in; she probably wouldn't have existed or not quite be able to hold (or at least voice) the same views as she does in the book. Personally, I find her less believable than Aliena in Pillars. As always, descriptions of women in Follett's work often seem quite male gaze-y as do the sex scenes.

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