The Evening and the Morning

  ‘'At last, the church bell struck.''
997. England stands at a crossroads. The Dark Ages are almost over, a new era is about to begin. The dangers are still present as the Welsh threat and the Viking raids continue. But the true menace for the people comes from their own ground, from the clerics and the noblemen whose corruption, greed, and violence plague the weaker and the ones who dare to voice their independence. A Norman noblewoman, a boatbuilder and a brilliant monk find themselves in the middle of vile efforts and hideous actions.
The fourth installment in the Kingsbridge Series, the ‘'prequel'' to The Pillars of the Earth as it has been dubbed, turned out to be my very favourite.
Yes, I loved it even more than its famous sister. The familiar pattern is here, no doubt about that. There is the strong woman who stands against the ambitions of diabolical men, there is the young lad whose honesty and hard work help him prosper through the obstacles, there is the gifted monk who tries to fight against the machinations while keeping one or two skeletons of his own. But. Ken Follett depicts this very special era in unique detail and atmosphere - as always - and trims the fat, keeping the action, the characters and the settings condensed and to the point. In my opinion, there are no unnecessary characters as in A Column Of Fire (which was a true torture, at times....), no frivolous plotlines as in The Pillars of the Earth and World Without End, and the characters felt much more believable, even the evil ones were much more complex and vulnerable than Bishop Waleran. 
There is a balanced view of the State and the Church, there is vivid dialogue without sounding ‘'jarring'' (a major problem in A Column of Fire) and Ragna entered my personal Dream Team of literary female characters. She was more complex, more likable and more interesting than the obnoxious Aliena, the naive, apathetic Caris, and Margaret.  
I won't say more. I admit I was a bit cautious after A Column of Fire and because of my live for the history of the 10th century, but I was thoroughly satisfied. So much so that The Evening and the Morning is now my favourite Ken Follett book.
‘'We live in a world of cruelty and ignorance and pain, but we make it better. When evil is done in front of our eyes we cannot remain silent.''
My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
 

A very average Ken Follett book. Good, with some tense bits, and some loathe-worthy characters and heros to root for. The writing is quite formulaic if you read more than one book from Follett in a row, so I would advise waiting a few months between books. I enjoyed the 10th century setting, it's not often that fiction goes back that far.

Wow. He does it, again!

4.5

FULL REVIEW ON MY BLOG


It's been a long time since I read the Knightsbridge Series, and The Pillars of the Earth is one of my all-time favourite books ever. I love Follets style and storytelling. I know these books are fiction, but when reading them it just all seems real to me. I think that's what makes his books so good.

The Evening and the Morning is, just like the rest of the books in this series, marvelous. But yes, I must say, it's not as good as The Pillars of the Earth. I loved every page, but I somehow just felt it missed something.

I'd highly recommend it to anyone who likes historical fiction, and to anyone who's read the other books in the series.

This was my first Ken Follett book and it was just wow! It was superb and I definitely will be reading the rest of his books!

It was beautifully written with some fantastic (and some not so fantastic!) characters.

I loved Edgar, Ragna and Aldred. On the other hand, I despised Degbert, Dreng, Wynstan, Wigelm. Honestly the four of them were absolutely vile. Wilwulf nor Gytha were any better! Ken did an excellent job portraying these characters in such a way, that it elicited such strong emotions in me! (I know that if I'd read it with my fellow Pigeonholers, I would have made plenty of comments along the way (It was on PH a while back, but unfortunately I didn't get a spot, so had to make do with reading on my own.)!

Anyway, despite how they were repeatedly knocked down, I loved the fighting spirit Edgar, Ragna and Aldred continuously showed.

I loved that the book contained a couple of strong female characters (Ragna obviously and Edgar's mother, Mildred.) Was nice to see that, they atleast, wouldn't let themselves be walked all over unlike certain other characters!

Anyway, I really enjoyed this and definitely would highly recommend it to others.

Ken Follett's “The Evening and the Morning” is a prequel to his acclaimed “Pillars of the Earth” series, set in England during the Dark Ages. The novel is an expansive and ambitious work of historical fiction that traces the lives of three central characters: Edgar, a boatbuilder from a small English village; Ragna, a Norman noblewoman with a complex past; and Merthin, a Welsh monk whose faith is tested by the tumultuous events of the time.

Follett's writing is characterized by a meticulous attention to historical detail, particularly in his depictions of architecture, craft, and warfare. The plot is driven by a series of interlocking storylines that take the characters on a journey from the English countryside to the streets of Paris, with each character grappling with their own personal challenges and the larger forces shaping the world around them.

While the novel's length - clocking in at over 800 pages - may seem daunting, Follett's prose is accessible and engaging, with a clear and direct narrative style that keeps the story moving forward. The characters are well-drawn and complex, with nuanced motivations and relationships that evolve over the course of the novel.

A bit of an enjoyable weird one. Weird because, compared to other authors I recently read, Follett is a bit pedestrian as a writer. Ok it is years since I read his other stuff but I remembered him better. The characters are very black or white, the dialog capable but not memorable, however, he does move the narrative arc along, and for a thriller writer turned to Historical novelist, you have to give him credit that he chooses to have a loose plot rather than some strong theme that drives the beginning middle and end. I trust that it was well researched and it does seem a labour of love and the Pre-Norman period of Britain is an interesting one (I now know what a Hue & Cry is...) I will line up his more famous sequal to my TBR list