Enjoyable and gripping historical fiction

I enjoyed this third part of the Kingsbridge series much more than the first part, which I thought a medieval soap opera populated by caricatures. I skipped part two but reading reviews of this third part gathered that it might be more to my taste and it was. It has far more historical content, albeit the very familiar Tudor period upon which many books and films have been based, but where this book scores is in bringing this turbulent period to life through the experiences of his fictional characters interacting with real people and events. The parallel stories of the fictional characters’ lives adds to the impact of the historical events. The recurring theme in this long saga is religious conflict and intolerance based on relatively small differences in doctrine leading to violence, cruelty and terrible suffering: all in the name of God!

Despite the outcomes being known, I was gripped by the author’s pacy reenactments of historical event such as the St Bartholomew’s Day massacre of protestants in Paris, the aborted invasion of the Spanish Armada and the Gun Powder Plot. Maybe to ease the endless stream of Man’s inhumanity to Man (and often Women) the author indulges in his penchant for raunchy sex scenes and lascivious descriptions of women’s bodies, particularly their breasts: a recurring theme in the author’s books.

Contrary to the views of some other reviewers I think the narrator is excellent.

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10 people found this helpful

Another compelling epic from Ken Follett

With the Kingsbridge trilogy Follett makes accessible a period of history that was as full of political intrigue, religious struggle and daring do as the modern age. Thoughtfully created characters combined with compelling plots makes the book come alive and leaves the reader wanting more. Outstanding narration as always by John Lee. Thoroughly recommended.

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1 person found this helpful

please leave the fake horrible accents

and pronounce the French names and places correctly at least. The story is very good and historically very interesting.

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Superb story

Loved it, had me enthralled for the whole 30 hours. The narrator was spot on.

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Best of the three

This book followed all the major events of the period, and gave me a real insight of the religious dissonance of the time. The characters are well drawn and the story sweeps them along. You are drawn in, and feel real empathy for the characters. An excellent historical novel of the Elizabethan era. I not only enjoyed the rich journey, but feel educated. I have since been driven to read other historical sources of the period. Follett clearly has researched his sources well. The best of the three.

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Less sex, we're British!

Too much "in your face" explicit sex content and description which was definitely not necessary!

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Follett at his best

Would you listen to A Column of Fire again? Why?

Most definitely. It's one of those stories to get lost in, really transports you to a different era, I loved it.

Which scene did you most enjoy?

Don't want to give any of the plot away, but every scene had me feeling I was there watching from the side lines.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

At over 30 hours it's not possible, but I didn't find myself getting impatient waiting for the next time I could have a listen.

Any additional comments?

Narration was good, but did sound a little robotic at first, ok once you've given it a chance.

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A story where I hoped more

As usual, I really enjoyed the pen of the author and the narration. Unfortunately, as for the second volume, I did not find this little something more than there was in the first volume.

I would have appreciated some more details about the life of the people of the time. In addition, there were many characters, but eventually few were really present in the story and / or developed.

We went around Europe, it was interesting, and I learned about the conflicts between Catholics and Protestants.

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outstanding

This has been an incredible journey through history. never a dull moment. An absolute masterpiece.

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Fantastic Listen

I have just finished the last book in the Pillars of the Earth series as read by John Lee.I loved the trilogy so much that I was devastated when John lee said goodbye to me. I have also listened to The Century Trilogy and cannot recommend both these trilogies enough.
Not only are they engaging but I feel that I have had a thorough insight into the history and politics of the periods covered.
John really brings the characters to life and the plot is addictive. I only wish I could find something equally riveting to replace them. Any suggestions?

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