In mid-1550s England, Ned Willard, impossibly in love with a woman on the other side of the country's drawn-sword religious conflict, works for Princess Elizabeth. When she becomes queen and establishes England's first secret service, Ned has his work cut out for him. Next in the multi-billion-copy-selling Kingsbridge series.

This third volume in Follett's "Pillars of the Earth" series takes place in the 16th century, approximately 200 years after the events of World Without End. Though it opens in the English town of Kingsbridge, where the first two books took place, Follett takes advantage of the period's zest for exploration and situates his cast of thousands all over the known world; from England to France, Spain, and beyond. Following the plague years, it was a time of great upheaval in Europe as a middle class began to rise and people became disenchanted with both the ruling class and the church. Then came the Protestant Reformation. At the heart of this great novel is Ned Willard, who wants desperately to marry Margery Fitzgerald, but their religious differences force the pragmatic Ned, who is Catholic, to throw his lot in with the young Queen Elizabeth while Margery risks her life to help spread the Protestant faith. Several climactic scenes—including a truly horrific execution and massacres in the streets of Paris—dramatize the vast social and religious divide of the era. VERDICT Though a few notes may be needed to help keep the characters straight, Follett has written another masterly historical novel that will keep readers enthralled well past bedtime.—Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage P.L., AK

Follett returns to the fictional West Country town of Kingsbridge. It is 1558, and Mary Tudor is not long for this world. Her death unleashes a battle between Catholics and Protestants that dominates this novel, which is set primarily in England and France across five decades. Ned Willard, a moderate Protestant, battles the forces of religious extremism as he works as a spy for Queen Elizabeth I. John Rafter Lee brings a modulated, English-accented sensibility to this story. His character voices add extra vitality to the narration but don't overpower it. VERDICT Recommended for libraries with large historic fiction collections and listeners who like detailed historical narratives. ["Another masterly historical novel that will keep readers enthralled well past bedtime": LJ 7/17 starred review of the Viking hc.]—David Faucheux, Lafayette, LA

Treasonous plots, family rifts, and international political intrigue abound in the third installment of Follett's (Pillars of the Earth) Kingsbridge series of historical dramas. In the middle of 16th-century England, Kingsbridge Cathedral stands above a town divided by religious conflict. Queen "Bloody Mary" Tudor is killing Protestants. When 18-year-old nobleman Ned Willard loses his sweetheart Margery and his family's importing business to Margery's upward-climbing Catholic family after the queen condemns them for being pro-Protestant, he decides to join Protestant Princess Elizabeth Tudor's secret service. Ned and Margery's love for each other sustains itself despite decades and miles apart, but can it survive their ideological differences? This sweeping epic delivers suspense, history, and romance in equally satisfying, if sometimes heavy-handed, measures. Follett makes use of multiple winding plotlines and optimistic characters equipped to see any battle through to the end. The novel is an immersive journey through the tumultuous world of 16th-century Europe and some of the bloodiest religious wars in history. Follett's sprawling novel is a fine mix of heart-pounding drama and erudite historicism. (Sept.)