The Pillars of the Earth cover art

The Pillars of the Earth

 Preview
Try Standard free
Select 1 audiobook a month from our entire collection.
Listen to your selected audiobooks as long as you're a member.
Auto-renews at $8.99/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Pillars of the Earth

By: Ken Follett
Narrated by: John Lee
Try Standard free

Auto-renews at $8.99/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $34.99

Buy Now for $34.99

About this listen

An epic, spellbinding tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, The Pillars of the Earth is Ken Follett's historical masterpiece.

A Mason with a Dream
It is 1135 and civil war, famine and religious strife abound. With his family on the verge of starvation, mason Tom Builder dreams of the day that he can use his talents to create and build a cathedral like no other.

A Monk with a Burning Mission
Philip is the church prior of Kingsbridge. A resourceful man, he knows that if his town is to survive at all, it must find a way to truly thrive. He decides, then, to build Kingsbridge the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has ever known.

A World of High Ideals and Savage Cruelty
As the prior recruits his mason, so begins a journey of ambition, anarchy and the struggle for absolute power. Facing enemies that would thwart them, they will stop at nothing to fulfil their grand plans of Kingsbridge. Soon build tensions between good and evil, turning church against state, and brother against brother . . .

The Pillars of the Earth is the first in The Kingsbridge Novels series, followed by World Without End and A Column of Fire.

 Genre Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Medieval Thriller & Suspense
All stars
Most relevant
Enjoyed immensely - word limit is annoying but must be met to submit so I’ll do it

Excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Very well written, interesting and educational. Characters are captivating. The narrator was excellent and dramatic. Thoroughly enjoyed the listen. Would recommend.

Couldn’t stop listening

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I love the story....probably one of the best I ever listen too. very interesting history.

Amazing Narrative great story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this book. I did find the sex scenes a bit much but I fast forwarded when they went on too long. This book is fabulous and has stood the test of time.

Excellent story great narrator

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Took me a long time to decide to get this - but I’m glad I did. I’ve learnt a lot about that time in history and the 40hrs+ whizzed by.
Great characters with good story lines.
Not super keen on the narration

Interesting!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.