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jaqxun's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Slavery, Bullying, Death, Excrement, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Rape, Torture, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Murder, Alcoholism, Violence, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, and Child death
ahinks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Slavery, Rape, Torture, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Gaslighting, Death, Adult/minor relationship, War, Trafficking, and Incest
mvanhaas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Torture, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Death, War, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Rape, Violence, and Slavery
sirius_feanor's review
2.75
The sex scenes are one of the worst I've ever read! And most of them are told from a female point of view. They are so obviously written by a male it's just ridiculous.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Slavery, Child death, Death of parent, Infidelity, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Torture, Chronic illness, and Grief
carolined's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, Violence, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Suicide
Minor: Alcoholism
beanjoles's review against another edition
4.5
This was my first Ken Follett read. I picked it up as a skip-the-line loan on a whim and I’m very glad I did! Other reviewers have mentioned that the characters don’t have a ton of depth, and that’s true, but it was still a really fun, tense, and informative listen. Spoiler for the ending:
One of my favourite aspects of this novel was the keen attention paid to the minutiae of English life in the Dark Ages. I learned about shipbuilding, construction, and life for common peasants. It was interesting seeing the beginnings of the landlord system and how the laws regarded people of different statuses and genders. I also learned a lot about the horrors of slavery practised by the English, something I didn’t realize they’d been doing even way back then. I’d say I enjoyed the book as much for its world building as I did for the plot and characters.
I liked this enough to put a hold on the Pillars of the Earth, and I’m excited to see where the story goes next!
A content note: As you might expect of a book written about this era, there is a good deal of sexual violence in this book. Some of it is gratuitous to the plot but does contribute to worldbuilding (unfortunately). Id probably stay away from this book if sexual violence and r*pe are triggers for you. Examples:
Graphic: Alcohol, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Torture
Minor: Infertility and Suicidal thoughts
lunar_witch's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Rape, Murder, Violence, Slavery, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Pedophilia
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Pedophilia, Sexism, and Torture
more_books_than_days's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
With a cast of characters who fell into predictable tropes, either good or evil with little in between, the plot also felt predictable, and very slow moving. I ended up skipping paragraphs and skim reading many pages rather than battling through sections of prose that did little to advance the story. This was a disappointment,
because I very much enjoyed the Pillars of The Earth trilogy.
Graphic: Child death, Torture, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Death, Gore, and Sexism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Confinement, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Murder, Violence, Suicide, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Sexism, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Chronic illness, Excrement, and Kidnapping
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Infidelity