World Without End

By: Ken Follett

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 45 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

In 1989 Ken Follett astonished the literary world with The Pillars of the Earth, a sweeping epic novel set in 12th-century England that centered on the building of a cathedral and the men, women, and children whose lives it changed forever. Critics were overwhelmed, and readers and listeners ever since have hoped for a sequel.

At last, here it is. Although the two novels may be listened to in any order, World Without End takes place in the same town of Kingsbridge, two centuries after the townspeople finished building the exquisite Gothic cathedral that was at the heart of The Pillars of the Earth. The cathedral and the priory are again at the center of a web of love and hate, greed and pride, ambition and revenge.

Three years in the writing, World Without End once again shows that Ken Follett is a masterful author writing at the top of his craft.

Listen to The Pillars of the Earth.

©2007 Ken Follett (P)2007 Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc.

Critic reviews

"Fans of Follett's previous medieval epic will be well rewarded." (Publishers Weekly)

Great Saga!

Terrific & engaging story with fantastic narration! I enjoyed settling down with this story at night. The characters are well developed and the story is compelling. The performance is stellar!

Great story

Similar to pillars in all the best ways. Excellent narration. I think a great ending too

Another amazing story, albeit familiar

Anyone who loved Follett's Pillars of the Earth will feel right at home with World Without End. The stories can be eerily similar at times, seemingly intentional. Both stories open with a mysterious circumstance that does not come full circle until the end of story. Both stories feature an evil villain who commits depraved acts of violence and malice. Both stories feature a troubled romance and many twists and turns. One complaint I have had of both books is that revelations that may have profoundly affected the main characters were never revealed in either story, The cause of the burning of the cathedral in Pillars, the real parents of certain characters and who stole Mirthen's father's money in World Without End are never secrets known to the audience that are never revealed to other characters. While more realistic, it can feel like a missing piece at times. It definitely does not take away from the story overall, however. Another complaint I would have specifically about World Without End would be the lack of detail and seeming importance of Mirthen's relationship with Philipa. It comes and goes so fast that it may as well not have happened at all as far as I am concerned.

the narrative

awesome read! Gteat Story telling on the part of the author. I would recommend it to others. Narration made it come to life.

The narrator is one of the best readers I have listened too.

I love how the writer had a different story from Pillars of the Earth, but kept the overall theme. I can’t wait to read the third book.

Wonderful!!

A must read! Just as good as the first book! I can’t wait to go to book 3 now!

Absolutely a masterpiece!

ken follet is a master story teller, and develops characters like no other!

this is absolutely a literary masterpiece.

this and "pillars of the earth" should be considered among mankinds all time epic classic novels!!

it's entertaining, brilliant, educating, intriguing and absolutely "can't put down"


don't miss this and pillars of the earth!! my two favorite listens by far!

Simply AMAZING!

Although it took a little time to get going compared to the quickness of Pillars of The Earth, this is a far more complex and engrossing story than Pillars...and that is saying a lot because I treasure Pillars as one of my greatest reads! The evil in this book is far more sinister and I absolutely fell in love with the characters. John Lee does such an amazing job of giving each character its own life and he outdoes himself with every passage.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Read Pillars first if you haven't, and once you do GET THIS one as it builds on an already amazing foundation.

Terrific!

Follet breathes life into medieval England with his two books, Pillars Of The Earth, and this one. Halfway through, I am going to be ever so sad when this second book is finished. I wish it could go on forever....
The narrator is so good he makes me forget he's reading. I wish there were more long books by this narrator, I'd follow him anywhere.

Fascinating view of the times

I don’t know how I fit in the time, but getting through this book became a priority in my life. This is a great book! It does a wonderful job of expressing life in that age. The terrors which they regularly faced are just not a part of our lives. It is amazing that humanity survived. This book, as well as Pillars of The Earth, helped me to grow in my appreciation of this.