The Pillars of the Earth (1989)

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, this is Ken Follett's classic historical masterpiece. The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known ... of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul ... of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame ... and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother. The Pillars of the Earth is followed by World Without End and A Column of Fire.