Cathedral of the Sea, Ildefonso Falcones
Cathedral of the Sea, Ildefonso Falcones
7 Rating(s)
List: $30.00 | Sale: $21.00
Club: $15.00

Cathedral of the Sea

Author: Ildefonso Falcones

Narrator: Paul Michael

Unabridged: 22 hr 55 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 05/01/2008

Synopsis

In the tradition of Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth, here is a thrilling historical novel of friendship and revenge, plague and hope, love and war, set in the golden age of 14th-century Barcelona. Arnau Estanyol arrives in Barcelona and joins the powerful guild of stone-workers building the magnificent cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar, while his adoptive brother Joan studies to become a priest. As Arnau prospers, he secretly falls in love with a forbidden woman. When he is betrayed and hauled before the Inquisitor, he finds himself face-to-face with his own brother. Will he lose his life just as his beloved cathedral is finally completed, or will his brother spare him?

About The Author

Ildefonso Falcones is a Spanish lawyer and the internationally bestselling and award-winning author of Cathedral of the Sea and The Hand of Fatima. With over seven million copies sold, his work has been translated into more than 40 languages worldwide. He lives in Barcelona with his wife and four children.Paul Michael is a stage, screen, and television actor of international status. His TV credits include leading roles in a number of British sitcoms. He has acted onstage in plays ranging from Macbeth to The Wizard of Oz.

Reviews

AudiobooksNow review by Deisi on 2010-07-19 19:48:47

gotta tell you, i really almost sent it back around CD 6 - it was depressing and sad and these people could not catch a break and i kep thinking to myself why would anyone want to write about these horrible things - why would anyone want this to be what they are known for? BUT i gave it one more CD and it started down a redeeming path and a wonderful story. To me it was a cross between Les Miserable, Pillars of the Earth withg a little of the Count of Monte Cristo.

Goodreads review by Tea on September 06, 2018

This is one of my favorite Spanish novels... And my precious acquisitions as editor... :) I've heard about this book, at that time just published in Spain, from his agent during Book Fair in Turin... called Laguna's big boss during first cigarette break, we agreed to give an offer... And by the time......more

Goodreads review by Karen on October 14, 2009

I gave up on this book at page 252 of 600. The very beginning was pretty interesting, and I found the character of a young man essentially raising his baby alone (with his remote wife) as a successful medieval serf in pastoral Spain very compelling. I liked the stuff through the pottery workshop, to......more

Goodreads review by Gary on June 12, 2022

I picked up this well crafted historical epic masterpiece at a charity shop and am so thrilled that I did. It is passionate and beautiful, inspiring , uplifting and heartbreaking, with a strong feel for 14th century Catalonia at the height of the Inquisition Arnau Estanyol is the son of a fugitive se......more

Goodreads review by Carlo on September 04, 2022

"Tu verras, cela ressemble aux grands récits de Ken Follett", m'avait dit l'amie Est'l, avec laquelle nous partageons souvent les mêmes affinités littéraires. Pas déçu! Similitudes mais une approche différente, plus développée encore que chez Follett. Falcones le Barcelonais a dû effectuer des recher......more

Goodreads review by Beatriz on November 24, 2021

La Catedral del Mar es, sin duda, un libro hermoso, muy emotivo y perfectamente escrito. El autor alude y utiliza pasajes históricos para ambientar la novela enriqueciéndola mucho, a veces demasiado por lo descriptivo, sobre todo para un lector que no es de nacionalidad española, pero tampoco cansa.......more

Quotes

Praise for the #1 international bestseller Cathedral of the Sea
 
“The passion and heartache, as well as the grit and grime, of medieval Spain come alive...This epic novel...twists and turns through war, women and the Spanish Inquisition...[A] saga filled with colorful characters...[A] fantastic fourteenth-century fresco.”—USA Today
 
“[It’s] soap opera on a grand scale, made believable and enthralling by the inclusion of the commonplace brutalities and small compassions of life in medieval Barcelona. Watching Arnau’s rise from literal rags to riches is frequently like watching a series of train wrecks; you’re horrified but can’t look away...[The] plot...is so beautifully structured that the last sixty pages detonate like a string of firecrackers...[The] prose is powerful...Falcones has an eye for the singular, telling detail, and…his characters are...believable...[A] riveting story.”—The Washington Post
 
“[An] absorbing epic...Falcones’s rich portrait of medieval society is fascinating.”—Publishers Weekly
 
“[A] sprawling medieval family saga.”—Kirkus Reviews
 
“With Cathedral of the Sea, Ildefonso Falcones dethrones Eduardo Mendoza and
Arturo Pérez-Reverte...and has become Spain’s new Dan Brown.”—El Mundo
 

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List