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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
An interesting perspective on early medieval politics within the noble, clerical and peasant part of England. The fact that everything ends up exactly how u would want, the good guys win in the end basically, I would call a downside. It is simply unrealistic. Follett manages to be more than average historically correct too which I do enjoy!
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Loved learning how this whole series started
Listened to audible. So…at the beginning this book would have gotten a 4. Yes, the characters are two dimensional - the good are very very good and the bad are very very bad - and the story is fine but not anything to write home about. But, the amount of research Follett does on the time, is amazing. The food, the dress, the hair, the lands, the agriculture, the architecture, the hierarchy, the language, the child rearing, the development of tools - it’s all there and you feel like you’ve taken a fabulous history class. That lasts for 80% of the book. Then, all of a sudden, you feel like the history class is over and what’s left is an insipid love story with many too many obstacles and a tortuously slow, dragging plod to the end. That 20% would have gotten a 2 star from me…which is how I ended at 3.
Honestly, a little disappointed. I fell in love with the trilogy about a year ago and had high hopes for this. It seems like the formula has got the best of him (Follett). The gratuitous sex is coming off as tone deaf instead of "medieval realism" or whatever he thought it was meant to be. The evil characters are almost cartoonish. I half expected the bishop to twirl his mustache while he metaphorically tied a character to the train tracks. I'm not sorry I read it, but I wish it had given me more.
I've had [b:The Pillars of the Earth|5043|The Pillars of the Earth (Kingsbridge, #1)|Ken Follett|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1576956100l/5043._SY75_.jpg|3359698] and the other books in the series on my TBR list forever, so when this book came out and it was the prequel I decided to read it first and then hit the series in 2021.
I enjoyed the story line and Follet's descriptions of everyday life during the Middle Ages. What I had a problem with was his writing. It seemed like he was writing for someone on a 7th grade reading level. The writing was stilted and juvenile. That being said I was captivated by the story and wanted to see how it ended. I will continue to at least read [b:The Pillars of the Earth|5043|The Pillars of the Earth (Kingsbridge, #1)|Ken Follett|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1576956100l/5043._SY75_.jpg|3359698]. Hopefully the writing is a little better.
I enjoyed the story line and Follet's descriptions of everyday life during the Middle Ages. What I had a problem with was his writing. It seemed like he was writing for someone on a 7th grade reading level. The writing was stilted and juvenile. That being said I was captivated by the story and wanted to see how it ended. I will continue to at least read [b:The Pillars of the Earth|5043|The Pillars of the Earth (Kingsbridge, #1)|Ken Follett|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1576956100l/5043._SY75_.jpg|3359698]. Hopefully the writing is a little better.
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loved it! Felt just like the first book (the best one). Characters you root for, characters you hate, lots of victories and setbacks. I thoroughly enjoyed!
More of everything you love about a Ken Follett book. If you like the Kingsbridge series you'll enjoy this one too.
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence
Moderate: Child abuse
My husbands review- There were no surprises in this book. We are all sinners but some people are just evil. Follett spent the first 700’pages letting the evil people win. The evil people die in the end but we all die in the end. The main woman character marries the main guy character and you could see that coming a mile (900 pages) away. see He did not like this book.