When I first read The Pillars of the Earth 15 years ago, I absolutely fell in love with it. I would have never imagined that the building of a cathedral in 12th century England could be fascinating, but the rich cast of characters totally enthralled me.
World Without End is a sequel of sorts: it takes place in the same setting of Kingsbridge two centuries later. The story is a bit predictable and the characters unidimensional – I often felt I was observing a nature vs nurture story with nature winning every time – but perhaps the original suffered from the same flaws and I did not notice them as I was much younger. Regardless it made for great storytelling!
Once again, I cared about the becoming of those characters and enjoyed their journey through life.
You can buy World Without End at:
http://www.amazon.com/World-Without-End-Ken-Follett/dp/0525950079/ref=bxgy_cc_b_text_a
If you have not read it, read The Pillars of the Earth (which just made Oprah’s Book Club):
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0451225244/sr=53-1/qid=1199466205/ref=tr_351531