The Pillars of the Earth

Front Cover
Macmillan, 2009 - Cathedrals - 806 pages
3321 Reviews

The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known . . . of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul . . . of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame . . . and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, this is Ken Follett's historical materpiece.

'Enormous and brilliant . . . this mammoth tale seems to touch all human emotion - love and hate, loyalty and treachery, hope and despair. This is truly a novel to get lost in'

Cosmopolitan

'A historical saga of such breadth and density . . . Follett succeeds brilliantly in combining hugeness and detail to create a novel imbued with the rawness, violence and blind faith of the era'

Sunday Express

What people are saying - Write a review

User ratings

5 stars
1296
4 stars
967
3 stars
534
2 stars
306
1 star
218

Review: The Pillars of the Earth (The Pillars of the Earth #1)

User Review  - Sephy Cheng - Goodreads

Took forever to finish. Read it as ebook. Didn't realise how thick the actual book is. I guess that's a good thing as it may have put me off. Lots of good character development, was able to relate to ... Read full review

Review: The Pillars of the Earth (The Pillars of the Earth #1)

User Review  - Bob Neto - Goodreads

Big disappointment.. Although I love historical fiction, this one was just ultra boring. - Characters: One would think that you get the feeling of "knowing" the main characters after reading such a ... Read full review

All 6 reviews »

Other editions - View all

About the author (2009)

Ken Follett was only twenty-seven when he wrote the award-winning novel Eye of the Needle, which became an international bestseller and film. He has since written several equally successful novels, including, most recently, Whiteout. He is also author of the non-fiction bestseller On Wings of Eagles. Ken Follett lives with his family in London and Stevenage.

Bibliographic information