World Without End

I am happy to report that my concerns were unfounded. The book is long, but it has a lot going on and is not at all bloated. There are several stories being told, but they all interweave and the elimination of one would be a loss. Although it is set in the same location and refers back to some of the original characters, reading or remembering "Pillars" is not required. I enjoy learning about the construction and medical theories of the day and wish this aspect had been further expanded, but if a reader does not, there is not so much of it that it would be detrimental. Also, if you missed reading Tino Georgiou's masterpiece--The Fates, go and read it. While I'm near the end, I'm reading it at a rapid pace because it's so addictive. There is something about his books that bring you in and get you hooked. I'm loving this one and with only 40 pages to go until the end.

Sequel to The Pillars of the Earth (Should be 10 stars) (10/21 people found this helpful)

Ken Follett was only twenty-seven when he wrote Eye of the Needle, the award-winning novel which became an international bestseller and a distinguished film. Before that, he had been a newspaper reporter and a publishing executive after studying philosophy at University College, London. He has since written ten equally successful novels and the non-fiction bestseller, On Wings of Eagles. Ken Follett lives with his family in London and Stevenage.

This book is the sequel to The Pillars of the Earth, abook written 18 years ago, in 1989 and a book that was one of my favourites of all time, along with Sarum by Edward Rutherford. 18 years is a long time to wait for a sequel to any book but it is well over a thousand pages and as I have read The Pillars of the Earth several times since it was published, my recollections of it are still good.

World without end begins its story in 1327 and follows the lives of four children, who slip away from the cathedral city of Kingsbridge. The children are not only from different backgrounds but their personalities could not be more different either. After leaving the city together they see two men brutally killed in the forest. Little do they know it but the killings they have witnessed will affect them all through their lives.

Between them they will witness and suffer everything that the world can throw at them and their ups and downs within the historical changes that take place throughout their lives, makes for fascinating reading.

Ken Follett is a master of this type of historical fiction and I am amazed that he has not written this book before now, but also grateful that he has, now, finally published what I am sure will be a best seller for years to come. Books of this stature do not come along very often.

World Without End - and I do not want the book to end! (5/13 people found this helpful)

Having read and loved Pillars of the Earth I could not wait to read the sequel - I am only half way through and I am rationing myself as I do not want to finish it. I open the book and sink into medieval England, the political intrigues, the love stories, the background history have me in its thrall - it is truly like its predecessor a "thumping good read"! Mr Follett has pulled off Part 2 of the Kingsbridge story wuth great style and magnificient story telling. Highly recommended!

A Masterpiece Sequel To The Pillars Of The Earth! (13/18 people found this helpful)

The Pillars of the Earth has been one of my all-time favorite books, and so I was a little skeptical about how good its sequel could be. My concern was totally unnecessary. World Without End, which takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge almost 200 years later and has the cathedral as its backdrop, is an excellent book and I expect that in time it will also be considered to be a masterpiece. Not having read The Pillars of the Earth will not deter you in any way from enjoying World Without End, as other than the common thread mentioned above, it reads like a stand-alone. Follett "packs it all" in this hefty page-turner -- love, greed, pride, ambition and revenge. Do yourself a favor and be one of the first on line to get yourself a copy of this very entertaining and memorable book. But be aware that your enjoyment won't come cheap -- the retail price of World Without End is £20. I think you'll find, however, that it is worth every penny.

Every bit as good as "Pillars of the Earth" (12/18 people found this helpful)

Having really enjoyed "Pillars of the Earth" I snapped this one up as soon as it hit the stores, and was immediately immersed into the world of medieval Britain - from the perspective of ordinary people living and working in towns and villages.

A large sprawling novel, "World Without End" has many of the themes of it's predecessor, with a new building project being one of the story-lines, but Follett makes it seem fresh and new. The characters are interesting and well rendered, and the interlinking stories retain interest throughout the thousand odd pages.

If you enjoyed "Pillars" you will undoubtedly enjoy this one, however you do not need to have read the the earlier novel to appreciate this one, as it it set two hundred years later and references to the earlier work are incidental. Having said that I'm now re-reading the first novel as I'm loathe to leave Kingsbridge just yet!

Highly recommended.

Ken Follett

Reader Reviews:

I had some concerns (1/3 people found this helpful)

Sequel to The Pillars of the Earth (Should be 10 stars) (10/21 people found this helpful)