A masterpiece of historical fiction. This novel has been well loved by readers for decades. I am happy to add my name to the list. Have you read it yet? #bookreview #historicalfiction Join the GRIMOIRE Discord: / discord
Fantastic review, Baron! This is probably my favorite historical fiction book that I’ve read (or top 3) and absolutely agree with a lot of your points, especially how great the character work is. World Without End is also a phenomenal book and sequel to Pillars! Really need to read the other two in the series as well! Great video man!
Amazing review, loved hearing your thoughts! I have been wanting to read this book for ages, but this review just bumped it up the TBR again. I consider myself a character-driven reader, so it's great to hear that the character work is so good in this one. It really sounds like a fascinating story!!
Great review! I'm happy to have finally gotten this behemoth off of my TBR. I definitely agree with you on the length. I was wiped out after finishing this. It would have taken me much longer to finish if it hadn't been a read along. Thanks for hosting!
if the book reading 300 pages too long is only a nit-pick then i'm here for it. officially added to the tbr 💯 which reminds me you gotta start a goodreads bro!!
Great review, Baron! I need to check this book out at some point. That’s great to hear about the character work and that it made you emotional. It does seem like a historical fiction must-read for fantasy fans. 😊
I been wanting to read this for a long time :D But never felt like i had the time. But you have persuaded me to bump it up on my TBR list! Im glad you enjoyed it!
Hello! I just found you, and I hope you come back soon! I Looooooove Pillars. So much so, that I read it 3 times! The first time, in 8 days or so. I read about 120 pages a day. A year later, I read it again, because I had forgotten too much, and then, when a friend gave me World Without End (years later), I had to read it again beforehand, so again, remember the characters, plots, etc.. I then read WWE and loved it just as much! I'm looking forward to reading the other 3 in the series, and I'm glad people are saying that the others are just as good! I certainly hope you have not stopped reading! lol Please come back! ~Caroline
If you liked this book I suggest you check out "La Catedral del Mar" (Cathedral of the Sea) by Ildefonso Falcones which is set in 14th century Barcelona. It revolves around the construction of a cathedral as well but in this case it's more of a background thing and the story is more character focused. The setting is quite different from what Ken Follet portrays in Pillars which makes it unique in a way: here we have a rich Spanish port city with his own local councils and where there are not only Christians but also Jews and Muslim trying to coexist (a totally different world from rural England).
Awesome review Baron, and thanks again for the readalong! I disagree about it being too long (I wanted it to be longer!!) but you explained the story and intrigue of the book without spoilers so well. This became one of my favorite books ever, and I agree that it reads like an epic fantasy minus magic. I'm curious which plot point resolve you weren't so happy with?
@@YourBrainonBooks Yeah I hear you. It wasn't super satisfying but by that point we had so much unnecessary violence I thought by not giving us the glorious way we wanted it to go down that he handled it with subtlety and grace in a way.
Just read the prequel The evening and the Morning and thought it better than Pillars of the Earth which I found unnecessarily long, as you mentioned. It really was excellent!! Great reviews, Thanks.
Great review Baron. I’ve really been on the fence about this one. Everyone says read it, but I don’t know. Your review pushed me a little further toward yes, but we’ll see. 🙂 I am a character driven reader, so it might work for me.
Excellent review Baron! I have this one on my shelve staring at me but kinda focused on finishing up Dresden Files and Book of the New Sun first. Not to mention halfway through a re-read of the Farseer trilogy. Not to mention wanting to prioritise shorter books, especially standalones in general. But I'm also in no hurry to read a 1000+ page tome 🤣 I've already read a few of them this year *cough* Malazan *cough*
Probably the best review I've seen for this book. As for the other Kingsbridge novels, World Without End has the same "problems" as Pillars, in that it's EVEN LONGER and could be shortened. However it was great. Hoping to do the other two early next year.
Loved the book, but it was far too sexual. Borderline erotica in some parts. Which is fine sometimes. The inaccurate portrayal of medevial peasents being so debauched and dirty served well to contrast Phillips pieous ideals. And the villain doing . . . villian things is uncomfortable, but that's the point. What bothered me was all the random and unnecessary remarks to people "genitals stirring" for zero reason. It doesnt go anywhere beyond that, and it usually is shoe horned into a completely unsexual encounter that just interrupts the pacing. And that is a theme in ALL Ken Follett books. As is child rape. Which can be a compelling plot point, but over a dozen books is a concerning pattern. I'm not a Ken Follett fan. He's definitely a creep. But isolated this book is very good.
