Historical

The Evening and the Morning

The Evening and the Morning

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-07-04 10:51:44
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Ken Follett
  • ISBN：0451478010
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Summary

#1 New York Times Bestseller
An Amazon Best Book of 2020

The thrilling and addictive prequel to The Pillars of the Earth--set in England at the dawn of a new era: the Middle Ages

Just as transporting as [The Pillars of the Earth] 。 。 。 A most welcome addition to the Kingsbridge series。 --The Washington Post

It is 997 CE， the end of the Dark Ages。 England is facing attacks from the Welsh in the west and the Vikings in the east。 Those in power bend justice according to their will， regardless of ordinary people and often in conflict with the king。 Without a clear rule of law， chaos reigns。

In these turbulent times， three characters find their lives intertwined。 A young boatbuilder's life is turned upside down when his home is raided by Vikings， forcing him and his family to move and start their lives anew in a small hamlet where he does not fit in。 。 。 。 A Norman noblewoman marries for love， following her husband across the sea to a new land， but the customs of her husband's homeland are shockingly different， and it soon becomes clear to her that a single misstep could be catastrophic。 。 。 。 A monk dreams of transforming his humble abbey into a center of learning that will be admired throughout Europe。 And each in turn comes into dangerous conflict with a clever and ruthless bishop who will do anything to increase his wealth and power。

Thirty years ago， Ken Follett published his most popular novel， The Pillars of the Earth。 Now， Follett's masterful new prequel The Evening and the Morning takes us on an epic journey into a historical past rich with ambition and rivalry， death and birth， love and hate， that will end where The Pillars of the Earth begins。

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Reviews

Sandy ，

Another excellent offering by Folllett in the Pillars of the Earth timeline。 This is actually a prequel。 As usual he keeps you interested all the way through。 By and large the nice characters get abused and pounded for most of the book by truly horrible people in power but finally persevere to happiness and success down the road。 I liked it a lot！

Don Visco ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I am a fan of this author， but was terribly disappointed by this book。 The character development for Wilwulf was fine， but it was very poor for Wynstan and Wigelm。 The latter two were really one-dimensional， cartoon villains， especially Wigelm。 And these were crucial characters that were foils to Edgar， Ragnar and Aldred。 I expected more…a deeper backstory for them， some motivation。 But this wasn’t found at all。

Pat ，

I was really drawn into thIs very well written story。 I love this period of Saxon England Follet description of Saxon life was vivid and historically accurate to begin with。 I was really there。 Then on Page 16 or 17 the Vikings Raiders arrived。 The warriors and the female warriors？ Follett must of joined the woke crowd。 No Viking warriors were female。 Yes some rare women We’re buried with a sword for cultural or religious reasons but the Xena Warrior princess idea is so ridiculously political an I was really drawn into thIs very well written story。 I love this period of Saxon England Follet description of Saxon life was vivid and historically accurate to begin with。 I was really there。 Then on Page 16 or 17 the Vikings Raiders arrived。 The warriors and the female warriors？ Follett must of joined the woke crowd。 No Viking warriors were female。 Yes some rare women We’re buried with a sword for cultural or religious reasons but the Xena Warrior princess idea is so ridiculously political and ahistorical it killed the story immediately。 My suspension of disbelief evaporated on that page so with my bubble burst and the book in the bin I felt very disappointed to see a writer put signalling how Politically virtuous he is above the historical accuracy of his writing。 What next a transsexual William the Conqueror？ African Saxons？ If you want historical accuracy In a book don’t bother with this one， if can’t get something this simple right then Just forget it。 If you don’t care about that or love the politics of pretend history then this might work for you。 Follett Is in the bin with his book for me。 。。。more

MaryLou ODonnell ，

True Follett style， which I enjoy very much。 The twists and turns of the main characters’ lives keeps one interested in the outcome， which ends just as I hoped it would。 Justice for all！

Deepak ，

A tale of a builder， a Noblewoman and a monk and how their lives intertwined。 It was hard to keep the novel down once you start reading。

Sharon ，

Another look at Kingsbridge， from the time before the namesake bridge was built。 Fillet focuses on three main characters to bring the story to life。

Jamie ，

I couldn't finish this book fast enough。 There is no way this is the same author who wrote Pillars of the Earth， it just can't be possible。 Medieval torture。 I couldn't finish this book fast enough。 There is no way this is the same author who wrote Pillars of the Earth， it just can't be possible。 Medieval torture。 。。。more

Marcia ，

An epic tale of the struggle between good and evil， corruption and justice during the Dark Ages。 Driven by power and greed， two brothers stop at nothing to take control of everything and everyone in their region。 Can their reign of terror be stopped and who will be brave enough to do it？

Greg ，

Another astounding addition to the King’s Bridge series。 Familiar themes: corrupt clergy， evil leaders， and， of course， a love that requires the reader to complete the tome （it is a large book） to find its fulfillment， are all found within。 Follett paints a world of mud， snow， and violence， while at the same time offering a portrait of forests， cozy timber homes， and the pastoral changing of seasons that （almost） make the reader long to be a part of that world。

Julie Pruitt ，

Pillars of the Earth is my favorite book so I was excited to read the Prequel。 It did not disappoint！

Marylee Lannan ，

Goodreads says I’ve read this before。 If so， I don’t remember it。 That pretty much sums up my opinion。 It was an acceptable way to spend the heat wave。

Ellen Lazarus ，

As usual， another fun book from Ken Follett。 Love his style of writing and how he endears you to his characters。 Great read。

B。 Adriana ，

So this book is part of the Kingsbrige series， the one before The Pillars of the Earth， only that it was published later。 Is a great story， Ken Follet is a great author and John Lee is a great narrator， probably my favorite one！

Sebastian Jaymes ，

Not Ken Follett’s finest hour， but a worthwhile read nonetheless as the author is on a scale far above mere novelists

Lian ，

One of the most amazin historical fiction I have ever read！The story take palce in England and follows three main characters: a boatbuilder， a noblewoman and a monk。 It is not boring for one moment。

Sacha Blu ，

Excellent and suspenseful storytelling。 Escapist but not light。 I mostly like Scifi， fantasy， and geopolitical adventure， but this historical series containing romance and intrigue is one of my favorites ！ The first sequel to Pillars of the Earth， titled World Without End， I found to be a paler imitation of Pillar （though still a decent read）。 And I havent read Column yet， so zu cant say if that was。 However this prequel is as good as or even maybe more enjoyable than Pillars。Trigger Warning: Th Excellent and suspenseful storytelling。 Escapist but not light。 I mostly like Scifi， fantasy， and geopolitical adventure， but this historical series containing romance and intrigue is one of my favorites ！ The first sequel to Pillars of the Earth， titled World Without End， I found to be a paler imitation of Pillar （though still a decent read）。 And I havent read Column yet， so zu cant say if that was。 However this prequel is as good as or even maybe more enjoyable than Pillars。Trigger Warning: This is definitely escapist fiction but that does not mean it is light summer reading。 Due to the setting period， there are innocent characters who deserve nothing but good （including protagonists/heroes， children， infants and companion animals） who are ruthlessly beaten， exploited， betrayed， raped， enslaved， mutilated and/or murdered。 It is not glorified but even the good characters， who tend to imagine more social progress， are supposed to be medieval。 So rape is wrong and a crime， but even the kindest people think it's not rape when a husband rapes his wife （especially if they are nobility）， and when a man rapes a single or widowed woman， marriage is often the resolution sought by the authority or community。Slavery is common， and owners can do anything to a slave， including prostituting a young girl， blaming her for getting pregnant and then murdering her newborn as soon as it's born。 Good ppl might think men who do that are assholes， but they do not really question the basis of such rights。 Only some monastic religious （nuns and monks） really have the cultural capacity for questioning such things on principle。SETTINGThis book is set in the late "dark ages" in Viking- raided Anglo Saxon England， less than 100 yrs before the Norman conquest/Middle Ages and cultural difference compared to the time of Pillars （only 150 later） is palpable。 In fact compared to the continent or England post-William the Conquerer （1066）， it's a bit of a culture shock for even a late medievalist！There isnt really a "rule of law" in the sense that the law matters much less than who your allies are and who has the power to raise an army （of course this is always somewhat true a % of the time in history， especially in regards to divine right of kings， but it is the norm for even the most petty local courts among the Angle Saxons）。 Its not so much corruption the way we moderns understand corruption （ie the way bribery and favor worked in Soviet system， or offering a bureaucrat cash - though theres that too）， more comparable to a world run mostly by the mafia。 The Church is surprisingly less powerful than in Pillars。 Even marriage is not really under their jurisdiction， and polygamous marriages are surprisingly common and openly practised， （though much less so on the continent）， however the Church is still a big political force and civilizing influence （I dont mean it was all good， I mean it was the repository of literate culture and a source of relatively progressive ideas to counter balance the barbarism of the "nobility"， who at this juncture， aside from King and maybe Dukes， were still little more than local chieftains）。 There are no stone castles in England， almost everything is wooden， though some churches （and in the book， a brewery and a jewelers house/workshop） are made of stone masonry。 Literacy is rare。 （The dearth of writing and stone structures is actually why we know much less about this period than we do about classical antiquity or high middle ages）。CHARACTERSThe protagonists are easy to empathize with （ his typical 3 types: a kind， plucky shrewd young noblewoman， a semi-orphaned clever but poor apprentice builder/inventor with a natural gift for physics and geometry， and a man of God who is faithful， kind and celibate but has noble ambitions -- this one is gay and its handled very matter of factly）。 Of course there is a trio of venal， power-mad or villains trying to ruin them， whom you will love to hate。My only significant criticism of Follet， （and it's one that applies to Pillars and World too-- I havent read Column yet） is that there is little moral ambiguity in his characters。 The villains are always motivated by clearly negative things like greed， power， narcissism， immorality and cruelty， while the heroes are motivated by positive things like empathy， honesty and fairness。 I found this to be unrealistic enough its really the only thing that ever took me out of the flow。 Though it is clear to us the villains dont SEE themselves as villians （because no one ever does） but rather as protagonists protecting their own interests， they are not understandable。 They are not as morally ambiguous as say， Javert， in Les Miserables， or as understandable as Darth Vader。PLOTBasically the story of how Kingsbridge came to be。Adventure， suspense， romance， it's all there and it's a page-turner despite being over 900 pgs。The villians start to win about halfway through and continue to win more and more until very close to the end， and do terrible things to the heroes making it emotionally gripping。 。。。more

Eric E Williams ，

If you liked "Pillars if the Earth"， pick this one up！This is the prequal to "pillars。。。" and it did not disappoint。 Follet has a way of winding his characters' fortunes together masterfully。 I don't always realize what I am being set up for。 He plants seeds early on that he reaps later。 I found myself rooting so hard for our heros and loathing the villains。 Just make sure you have time to read it。 It is a longer one and you'll have a hard time putting it down！ If you liked "Pillars if the Earth"， pick this one up！This is the prequal to "pillars。。。" and it did not disappoint。 Follet has a way of winding his characters' fortunes together masterfully。 I don't always realize what I am being set up for。 He plants seeds early on that he reaps later。 I found myself rooting so hard for our heros and loathing the villains。 Just make sure you have time to read it。 It is a longer one and you'll have a hard time putting it down！ 。。。more

Lorenza Alessandrelli ，

Un libro interessante， con una bella trama piena di colpi di scena。 Penso che leggero' il seguito。 Un libro interessante， con una bella trama piena di colpi di scena。 Penso che leggero' il seguito。 。。。more

Michelle ，

4。5 Stars。 Great saga。。。 I'm looking forward to traveling through this series。 4。5 Stars。 Great saga。。。 I'm looking forward to traveling through this series。 。。。more

Rachel S ，

Stopped reading。 The storyline is intriguing but the writing is too vulgar。

Sarah Ballman ，

I love Ken Follett and I loved this book。 My only reason for 4 stars was that I couldn't get into the characters as much。 Still a page turner， though。 I love Ken Follett and I loved this book。 My only reason for 4 stars was that I couldn't get into the characters as much。 Still a page turner， though。 。。。more

Heaven DeLaZerda ，

I wasn't quite sure where this book was going but it's a movie of a book。 Well done， highs and lows， twists， a lovely ending。 I wasn't quite sure where this book was going but it's a movie of a book。 Well done， highs and lows， twists， a lovely ending。 。。。more

Don Meincke ，

Finally a good endingI have thoroughly enjoyed the Follett historical novels but I am glad I've finished them。 So many plot turns， so much depressing violence and evil。 But I suppose that was the norm for this period in history。 Great book but thank goodness I can turn to something a little lighter now。 Finally a good endingI have thoroughly enjoyed the Follett historical novels but I am glad I've finished them。 So many plot turns， so much depressing violence and evil。 But I suppose that was the norm for this period in history。 Great book but thank goodness I can turn to something a little lighter now。 。。。more

Jennifer Hunt Harris ，

Another Follett MasterpieceI own and have read multiple times every book Ken Follett has written， and he never - ever - disappoints。 Knowing the length of The Evening and the Morning， I expected it to take a week or more to read。 I found， however， that it was as addictive as all of this author's books and greedily finished it in two days。 Now， I'm going back for my fourth reading of The Pillars of the Earth。 If you haven't read Follett， you are truly missing out on one of the best authors around Another Follett MasterpieceI own and have read multiple times every book Ken Follett has written， and he never - ever - disappoints。 Knowing the length of The Evening and the Morning， I expected it to take a week or more to read。 I found， however， that it was as addictive as all of this author's books and greedily finished it in two days。 Now， I'm going back for my fourth reading of The Pillars of the Earth。 If you haven't read Follett， you are truly missing out on one of the best authors around。 。。。more

Lucy Megronigle ，

I loved Follett's series beginning with Pillars of Fire， so when I saw this book， I was excited to read it， also。 It did not disappoint。 Edgar， the builder， and Ragna， the French noble woman， were both riveting characters。 Love reading about this time period， but so thankful I didn't live in those times。 I loved Follett's series beginning with Pillars of Fire， so when I saw this book， I was excited to read it， also。 It did not disappoint。 Edgar， the builder， and Ragna， the French noble woman， were both riveting characters。 Love reading about this time period， but so thankful I didn't live in those times。 。。。more

Tracie Hall ，

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILSt（Print: 9/15/2020; Viking; 928 pages。） （Digital: Yes。）Audio: 9/15/2020; 24:34:40; 978-0593289655; Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group; unabridged; 25 parts。（Film: No）。SERIES: Kingsbridge （prequel）CHARACTERS: （not comprehensive， being that I listened rather than read this book， I may have some of these names miss-spelled。 ）Edgar – English boat builderSungifu – Coome resident - Edgar’s 1st love Ragna – French Norman noble womanWilwulf – Ealdorman of ShiringDen – Shiri BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILSt（Print: 9/15/2020; Viking; 928 pages。） （Digital: Yes。）Audio: 9/15/2020; 24:34:40; 978-0593289655; Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group; unabridged; 25 parts。（Film: No）。SERIES: Kingsbridge （prequel）CHARACTERS: （not comprehensive， being that I listened rather than read this book， I may have some of these names miss-spelled。 ）Edgar – English boat builderSungifu – Coome resident - Edgar’s 1st love Ragna – French Norman noble womanWilwulf – Ealdorman of ShiringDen – Shiring SheriffBlod – Welsh slave at Dreng’s FerryKing Ethelred – English KingEmma – Bride of English KingAldred – English monkWynstan – Shiring BishopWigelm – brother of WynstanIron face – local outlaw/robberSUMMARY/ EVALUATION: Excellent！ If you’ve read any of Follett’s epic historical fiction novels you already have an opinion—go with it as this book replicates the others in the Kingsbridge series in drama， intrigue， craftsman details， array of characters， and the poignant depictions of the struggles， tribulations， and joys of bygone days。 The Evening and the Morning is as rich in character development， intrigue， and historical detail as the epic historical novels that have gone before （or， I might say “after” since this is the earliest time period a Follett novel has depicted）。 As a prequel to Pillars of the Earth， the timeline precedes all others of the Kingsbridge series， being the late 900’s to the early 1000’s。 The good characters are as admirable as any and the bad as loathsome as any。 AUTHOR:tKen Follett。 （June 5， 1949） According to Amazon， “Ken Follett was only twenty-seven when he wrote the award-winning EYE OF THE NEEDLE， which became an international bestseller。 His celebrated PILLARS OF THE EARTH was voted into the top 100 of Britain's best-loved books in the BBC's the Big Read and the sequel， WORLD WITHOUT END， was published to critical acclaim。 He lives with his family in London and Hertfordshire。”NARRATOR: tJohn [Rafter] Lee。 Oddly， Wikipedia and IMDb （Wikipedia’s source， so no wonder） make no mention of the many books John has narrated， but instead list his filmography （nothing I have seen， but probably because he is British）， television roles， and video game roles。 Apparently， he is also a playwright and producer。Mr。 Lee has a wonderful voice！ He’s one of those narrators I would follow the way I follow good authors。 In fact， I see he’s recently narrated an Erik Larson book about Churchill。 OK， that’s now one of my holds at LAPL。 😊 DEDICATION:t“In memoriam E。 F。”GENRE:tHistorical fictionLOCATIONS:tCombe， Shiring， Outhen， Dreng’s Ferry （Kingsbridge）TIME FRAMEtLate 900’s and early 1000’s CE， 10th century， 11th century， dark agesSUBJECTS:tEngland， Royal families， villages， religious figures， Ealdormen， Normandy， VikingsSAMPLE QUOTATION:tFrom Chapter 1:“Thursday June 17， 997”“Edgar knew he had a talent。 He was already a better boatbuilder than his elder brothers， and before long he would overtake Pa。 He had an intuitive sense of how forms fitted together to make a stable structure。 Years ago he had overheard Pa say to Ma: ‘Erman learns slowly and Eadbald learns fast， but Edgar seems to understand before the words are out of my mouth。’ It was true。 Some men could pick up a musical instrument they had never played， a pipe or a lyre， and get a tune out of it after a few minutes。 Edgar had such instincts about boats， and houses， too。 He would say: ‘That boat will list to starboard，’ or ‘That roof will leak，’ and he was always right。”RATING:t5 stars。 Anxious for my favorite characters to overcome their difficulties， I barely noticed the 26+ hours ticking by。STARTED-FINISHEDt6/12/2021 – 6/25/2021 。。。more

Héctor Ramírez Torres ，

Ken Follett no pierde su estilo。 Una tremenda novela histórica， con tonos de amor， traición， suspenso。 Era el eslabón faltante para los viudos de Pilares de la Tierra

Diane ，

I have now realized that Ken's Kingsbridge series （all 4 books） are pretty much the same。: a） the have-nots are brutely abused by the haves b） a main character falls in love with a woman he can't have。。。and hangs on until he can c） the main setting is the politics/power-holders at the time。 He tells a good story about this time period， a facination of mine， so I own them all in hardcopy and will probably reread - otherwise， off to the Salvation Army they will go。 I have now realized that Ken's Kingsbridge series （all 4 books） are pretty much the same。: a） the have-nots are brutely abused by the haves b） a main character falls in love with a woman he can't have。。。and hangs on until he can c） the main setting is the politics/power-holders at the time。 He tells a good story about this time period， a facination of mine， so I own them all in hardcopy and will probably reread - otherwise， off to the Salvation Army they will go。 。。。more

Alan Gresati ，

There is a reason why Follet is one of my favorites writers， he always keeps impresing me with his books， the pilars of the earth saga comes to an end with a magnificient finish。

Jack ，

Kenneth， I will literally read the entire history of England via soap opera-esque plots if you keep writing these。 I don't care how similar they are to each other， I need more。 Kenneth， I will literally read the entire history of England via soap opera-esque plots if you keep writing these。 I don't care how similar they are to each other， I need more。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Evening and the Morning

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Evening and the Morning&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Evening and the Morning&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0