Editors Reads Verdict
Follett's return to Kingsbridge is a genuine achievement — the Dark Ages setting gives the series a new texture, and the novel demonstrates that the world-building underpinning Pillars of the Earth was even richer than readers knew.
What We Loved
- The Dark Ages setting is a significant departure and allows Follett to explore genuinely different social conditions
- The prequel structure illuminates the earlier books retroactively
- The pacing and readability that made Pillars a phenomenon are fully present here
Minor Drawbacks
- At 817 pages it tests commitment even for fans of the series
- The villain-protagonist dynamic familiar from earlier Kingsbridge novels is clearly present
Key Takeaways
- → Civilization is built incrementally by individuals whose contributions outlast their own lives by centuries
- → The church in the early medieval period was simultaneously an oppressive power structure and the primary institution of education and culture
- → Viking-era England was a genuinely multicultural space where Danes, Saxons, Welsh, and Irish interacted in complex ways
| Author | Ken Follett |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Viking |
| Pages | 817 |
| Published | September 15, 2020 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Historical Fiction, Epic Fiction |
Evening and Morning Review
Evening and Morning is the fourth Kingsbridge novel and the most ambitious structural choice Ken Follett has made in the series — a prequel set in the Dark Ages, nearly four centuries before the events of The Pillars of the Earth, showing how the town of Kingsbridge came to exist. Where the earlier novels were set in medieval England at moments of relative institutional development — the 12th century, the 14th century, the 16th century — this one is set in 997 AD, when England was still under regular Viking assault and the Norman Conquest was still sixty-nine years away.
The prequel strategy pays off in ways that enrich the series retrospectively. The cathedral that stands at the center of The Pillars of the Earth had to begin somewhere, and Follett traces the chain of decisions — about where a town might grow, where a monastery might be established, what physical features would make a location defensible and commercially viable — that explains why Kingsbridge is where it is. For readers of the earlier novels, the pleasure is partly archaeological: recognizing the foundations beneath what they already know.
The three central characters follow the series template: Edgar is a builder’s son with exceptional talent who wants to construct things; Ragna is a Norman noblewoman who marries an English alderman and must navigate a court that resists her; Aldred is a monk with scholarly ambitions and a sincere faith. Arrayed against them is the usual Follett villain — in this case Wynstan, a corrupt bishop — whose malice provides the plot’s engine.
The Dark Ages setting is darker in the literal sense: there are fewer institutions, less legal recourse, and more direct violence than in the later medieval novels. Follett renders this with historical care while maintaining the accessibility that makes his epic fiction readable to audiences who would not otherwise approach medieval history.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is "Evening and Morning" about?
The fourth Kingsbridge novel is actually a prequel, set in the Dark Ages — 997 AD — showing how the town of Kingsbridge came to be founded. A builder, a monk, and a noblewoman navigate the dangerous world of Viking raids, Norman invasion, and the beginnings of English civilization.
What are the key takeaways from "Evening and Morning"?
Civilization is built incrementally by individuals whose contributions outlast their own lives by centuries The church in the early medieval period was simultaneously an oppressive power structure and the primary institution of education and culture Viking-era England was a genuinely multicultural space where Danes, Saxons, Welsh, and Irish interacted in complex ways
Is "Evening and Morning" worth reading?
Follett's return to Kingsbridge is a genuine achievement — the Dark Ages setting gives the series a new texture, and the novel demonstrates that the world-building underpinning Pillars of the Earth was even richer than readers knew.
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