Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
The Pillars of the Earth
- Kingsbridge, Book 1
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 40 hrs and 56 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
99p for the first 3 months
The Pillars of the Earth
Buy Now for £16.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
Editor reviews
Award-winning novelist Ken Follett is at his most magnificent in Pillars of the Earth, Book 1 of the trilogy series by the same name, narrated by professional voice artist John Lee. This incredible book has been voted in the top 100 of Britain’s Best Loved Books in the BBC The Big Read. The scope of detail in this audiobook is unparalleled. Its intricate plot is weaved with history, religion, politics, love and dishonour. It is an all-encompassing saga, delicately capturing the very core of existence in 12th-century England. Available now from Audible.
Summary
An epic, spellbinding tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, The Pillars of the Earth is Ken Follett's historical masterpiece.
A Mason with a Dream
It is 1135 and civil war, famine and religious strife abound. With his family on the verge of starvation, mason Tom Builder dreams of the day that he can use his talents to create and build a cathedral like no other.
A Monk with a Burning Mission
Philip is the church prior of Kingsbridge. A resourceful man, he knows that if his town is to survive at all, it must find a way to truly thrive. He decides, then, to build Kingsbridge the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has ever known.
A World of High Ideals and Savage Cruelty
As the prior recruits his mason, so begins a journey of ambition, anarchy and the struggle for absolute power. Facing enemies that would thwart them, they will stop at nothing to fulfil their grand plans of Kingsbridge. Soon build tensions between good and evil, turning church against state, and brother against brother . . .
The Pillars of the Earth is the first in The Kingsbridge Novels series, followed by World Without End and A Column of Fire.
Critic reviews
"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)
More from the same
What listeners say about The Pillars of the Earth
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 13-09-17
cracking read!
very long but absolutely loved this book from start to finish. kept me entertained through dozens of runs. who would have thought a story about 12th century cathedral building could be so gripping!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- s
- 14-05-15
Love it!
Loved reading the book, watching the series and now listening to it! Very addictive and enjoyable! One of my all time favourites
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Annie gs
- 04-10-17
Great book
This is really a great history lesson interwoven with fictional people, it's a great way of discovering more about the time.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- cazsto
- 22-05-16
Ggripping, descriptive &
Descriptive, Gripping and Emotional, this historic script has one waiting to see what happens next. the characters are divers and I got to know, love & dislike them as each is descriptively revealed. there are many twists and turns.
Very well narrated.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
Illuminating and entertaining
A truly fascinating topic superbly tackled by Follett, and read with style by Lee.
Highly recommended.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
- K. Hutchings
- 23-12-12
Fantastic can't fault it
I loved this book! The narration was great and the story line kept me interested all the way through. The characters were well developed and had the right balance of good v's bad with out them becoming caricatures of themselves. Sometime the story was frustrating because I wanted the diabolical Hamlies and the Bishop to get their comeuppance, but this just added to the excitement of the tale. The only negative about this audiobook is that you'll be late for work because you'll dawdle just so you can hear a like bit more!!!!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Raymond Moffat
- 27-07-17
A classic of the future
Enthralling epic story of desire, ambition, intrigue and treachery, the characters are fully rounded, the period fully realised and you're drawn into this epic of a story !
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance2 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Daniel Hope
- 28-06-17
Must Read
This book should be made into a mini series. Absolutely captivating. The only thing that lets it down is the poor production. Chapter numbering is all over the place and the narrators tone changes due to rrecordings being made either on different devices or at different locations. But dont let that ruin a truly amazing book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- SJBJ18463
- 01-10-17
A fantastic read. Wonderful interplay of Character
This book has kept me riveted from the first line of the last.
Highly original and NOT to be missed.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- michelle steer
- 18-01-17
pillars of the earth
brilliant book very well read a real pleasure to listen to. cant recommend highly enough
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!