Cathedral of the Sea

By: Ildefonso Falcones

Narrated by: Paul Michael

Length: 22 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

At last: The international best seller - which has already sold nearly 2 million copies worldwide - comes to America!

Cathedral of the Sea follows the fortunes of the Estanyol family, from their peasant roots to a son, Arnau, who flees the land only to realize spectacular wealth and devastating problems. During Arnau's lifetime Barcelona becomes a city of light and darkness, dominated by the construction of the city's great pride - the cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar - and by its shame, the deadly Inquisition. As a young man, Arnau joins the powerful guild of stone-workers and helps to build the church with his own hands, while his best friend and adopted brother Joan studies to become a priest. When Arnau, who secretly loves a forbidden Jewish woman named Mar, is betrayed and hauled before the Inquisitor, he finds himself faceto-face with his own brother. Will he lose his life just as his beloved Cathedral of the Sea is finally completed?

©2008 Ildefonso Falcones (P)2008 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“The passion and heartache, as well as the grit and grime, of medieval Spain come alive.... This epic novel...twists and turns through war, women and the Spanish Inquisition...[A] saga filled with colorful characters...[A] fantastic 14th-century fresco.” (USA Today)

“[It’s] soap opera on a grand scale, made believable and enthralling by the inclusion of the commonplace brutalities and small compassions of life in medieval Barcelona. Watching Arnau’s rise from literal rags to riches is frequently like watching a series of train wrecks; you’re horrified but can’t look away...[The] plot...is so beautifully structured that the last sixty pages detonate like a string of firecrackers...[The] prose is powerful...Falcones has an eye for the singular, telling detail, and…his characters are...believable...[A] riveting story.” (The Washington Post)

"[An] absorbing epic...Falcones’s rich portrait of medieval society is fascinating.” (Publishers Weekly)

Worthwhile, Challenging, Interesting -- WOW!

To begin with, the description of the book is not accurate. Mar is not a forbidden Jewish girl! Also, I was bothered beforehand by all the people who stopped listening, were bored, etc. Why on earth! Well, this work should not be compared to Follett who before he got comfortable with cathedrals wrote hard-hitting thrillers. No, this masterpiece more resembles Dumas' Count of Monte Cristo (revenge and coming out on top) or George Eliot's Daniel Deronda (Jews, women). Even Gone With the Wind, the movie aside, discusses aspects of our Civil War at some length. This story presents an interesting assortment of people working out how they fit in their community and with each other. This author is a lawyer! He cares about civil rights! He speaks both Spanish and Catalan. I like that this is a man's book; while I do care if the guy gets the girl, I also enjoy being told about Middle Ages legal problems, insurance for a ship's cargo, etc. And while the title refers to a cathedral, the main character carries stones for the cathedral as a young man and moves on to other pursuits in later life. While he supports his church, he is not the designer of the cathedral! As to language, anyone who has visited Barcelona may have noticed that besides Spanish there's another language which is impossible to pronounce and quite different from Spanish. [Maybe it helps to get locked in Gaudi's Sagrada Familia cathedral during siesta time!] And ordinary Spanish vocabulary was not yet being lisped at that time. So I don't think we can second-guess the narrator. The language being spoken by the characters in this book is as strange as Chaucer or Shakespeare is to English speakers. I have studied ancient Spanish texts and have an inkling of what I don't know. This narrator is superb! On the first listen I noticed a couple of odd wordings that might reflect on the translator. On the second listen, I just sat back and enjoyed. This is history at its most exciting!

As Good as Pillars....

I love fictional history and I though this book is as good as Follet's "Pillars of the Earth" and World Without an End". I was sorry it ended and cannot wait for another book from Idelfonso Falcones....captivating story that transports you to another time in history....The narrotor is also fabulouos!

Wont disappoint

Got this book title from a list of “books like The Pillars Of The Earth. “ Not as great as POTE (no book ever is, nor will be!) but rich in historical details and well-performed. Drew out empathy for the characters’’ toll. Worth the time.

Great read

Loved it. Finished in the book in four days because I couldn't do anything else.

Fascinating Barcelona in the 1300's

If you could sum up Cathedral of the Sea in three words, what would they be?

Engaging - Historical - captivating

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed the historical significance to the life in Spain during the 1300's. I learned that the Catholic Church held a lot of power and Jews and Moors were discrminated against for some absurd beliefs. The world has not changed much.

What about Paul Michael’s performance did you like?

Pronunciation was clear.

Who was the most memorable character of Cathedral of the Sea and why?

I loved the character of 'Mar', his orphan daughter. Such a good soul.

Any additional comments?

I was listening to 'Cathedral'...and that same week was catching up on NETFLIX 'Medici'. Same time period and many similiarities with the story line. Really enhanced the enjoyment of the story.

A great book

I enjoyed this listen very much. The narrator does a superb job with all the different charecters voices. I didn't notice any mispronounciations at all. The writer is a good story teller and you become immersed in the tale. I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.

Best since Pillars!

If you liked Pillars of the Earth & World without End.., well then you are in for a treat! multi-layerd and very inspirational... ooooh this book is so good!!

Epic Saga! My most beloved, treasured story ever!

I cherish this book in my heart, because of Arnau, the most honorable, loyal, courageous and well-loved man, ever.

Wonderful story

This was a hard book put down. The storyline was beautiful and the presentation had me and Richard from the first word. A great lesson!

Interesting

I like the different twists on how the writer creates and grows with each character.