The Evening and the Morning

 

Book Review

Title: The Evening and the Morning

Author: Ken Follett

Publisher: Viking, 2020

Pages: 915

Ken Follett is a master when it comes to narrating tales about the medieval period. His Kingsbridge trilogy went on to sell millions of copies in various languages. The Evening and the Morning is a prequel to the trilogy. It tells the story of some very fascinating characters who lived at the turn of the second millennium CE. The plot is set in Kings Bridge (as Deng’s Ferry came to be known in that period with the replacement of the ferry by a bridge) and surrounding places in the period of 997-1097.

Ragna, a Norman noblewoman, falls in love with Wilf, a British aristocrat without knowing that he was already married. Those were days when the British men could just “set aside” an existing wife in order to take a new one and thus Ragna becomes Wilf’s legal wife. Those were days when priests had wives and children though not always openly. Even bishops and cardinals had concubines as well as other clandestine pleasures. Wilf’s brother, Wynstan, is one such bishop whose venality knows no limits. They have one more brother, Wigelm, whose brain is not as clever as that of his brothers but the brutality of his heart does give them a competition. Ragna has to deal with not only these vile men but also their mother. She has much to endure.

Aldred is a noble monk who tries to bring more knowledge, light, and wisdom into the dark world that he lives in. Wynstan won’t make it easy for him and he has much to endure too. Ragna’s goodness becomes his sustenance to some extent.

There is a younger man, Edgar, who is an illiterate carpenter whose destiny becomes inextricably intertwined with those of Ragna and Aldred. All these three characters are driven by certain ideals such as integrity, justice, and compassion. But all the powerful people in their world are wicked. Why is goodness so helpless? This is one of the fundamental questions raised in the massive novel.

The state and the church were always in collusion in those days. Even now the collusion continues though not so overtly. Both the church and the state worked for keeping a few aristocrats, a small group of powerful men, securely in charge of everything. Everything includes the ordinary people too. People were just tools to be wielded as situations demanded. How Bishop Wynstan uses and throws people at the quirk of his will is just an example.

Follett keeps the reader engaged from the first page to the last. The plot moves from one gripping incident to another. This novel is yet another unputdownable thriller from him.

PS. October is the month of The Blogchatter’s #MyFriendAlexa campaign of which this blog is a part.