Pillars of the Earth but better

[Cactus2022]

A decade ago I read Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett and it brought me a lot of comfort at a difficult time in my life.

The bits I enjoyed most were the slow regeneration of the town and cathedral, how the monk built local alliances and helped the townsfolk. The domestic minutiae in Medieval times. Also the woman who had the business, how she built that up. People improving their lives and those around them I guess.

I picked it up again as a palate cleanser after two amazing but intense novels - it hasn't aged well and I've clearly become more discerning. The bad sex and constant descriptions of breasts is really off putting.

Does anyone have any recommendations along these lines without the soft porn?

Thanks so much.

I enjoyed London by Edward Rutherford and Paris. They tell the story of how the cities grew and of the families who live there.

Thankyou! That sounds right up my street, the growth of a city.

There a few more in the series, but I've not been able to get in to them. I really enjoyed London in particular. It was a book of epic proportions and an easy and enjoyable read.

I’m reading “The Witch Hunter” by Bernard Knight.
Set in 1195.
Suspenseful with historical authenticity.
I can’t put it down.

Sarum by Edward Rutherford is an excellent book that is very like the Pillars of the Earth (ie cathedrals).

Second and third Edward Rutherford. And agree with Pillars of the Earth. Tried it a couple of years ago and thought 'what is this nasty garbage?!' for the reasons you stated OP.

New York by Edward Rutherford was so amazing I slowed down towards the end to make it last longer. I felt bereft leaving the characters once I had finished but am too afraid to ever reread it incase it's lost that magic. I got at least half way through London after two attempts but didn't finish. I have Russia in my TBR pile.

@Cassiusclay what was it about New York that you loved yet not London? As I have little interest in NY and am v fond of London, but here it's the books that matter rather than the cities 😂

@Cactus2022 I have a bit of an obsession with New York so maybe that was it. I liked the weaving in of famous family names like the Vanderbilt's etc. With London I didn't make it to modern day and just never felt that same connection.

There a book called 'Bridge to the Sky' (margaret ball) that I remember finding fascinating as a young adult, and I was reminded of it when I read Pillars of the Earth later because of the descriptions of cathedral building. Bridge to the Sky is about a child oblate given to the monks at Ely cathedral, who grows up watching it being built, and then decides not to stay as a monk but to become an architect. Many of the descriptions of the building and life/times really stuck with me.

Forgot the link: www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/373055

Medieval Woman by Ann Baer
Completely engrossing and brilliantly written. It’s not a long book but it’s fascinating and she writes with such empathy and expertise.

I've heard that before about the obsession with breasts in Ken Follets books. I think I must have totally filtered them out as I have no memory of this at all 😂

Yeah there was the classic cliche where the female character 'was aware of her breasts as she moved'.

I am female and am not aware of my breasts when I move around any more than I am aware of my elbows or my ears or my knees. Would a male character refer to their testicles jiggling around in unsupportive boxers?

Really grinds my gears.

You may enjoy The Many Lives of Jan Six by Geert Mak. It's actually nonfiction but by a famous Dutch novelist - a multi-generation family story from Amsterdam based on historical records. Title is because they kept giving the same name to their sons. On the plus side, it definitely won't be in the running for the Bad Sex in Fiction Award...!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40806173-the-many-lives-of-jan-six