So many books . . .

The Hound and the Falcon takes place in an alternate reality in which the kingdom of Rhiyana, somewhere in Europe alongside traditional countries, is inhabited by the faerie folk. The first part of this tome, The Isle of Glass, I read as a separate work (review here). The latter two books bring Alf, our protagonist, first to Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade, and then back to Rhiyana and Italy as his heritage is threatened.

This book was my nemesis for some time as it took me ages to finish. I was interested in the world Ms. Tarr created, but the story was quite dry and could not hold my attention for long.

Rating: 2/5 Further reading: Tarr's homepage Judith Tarr (wiki)

 This first book in Tarr’s The Hound and the Falcon trilogy is a work of alternate history, taking place in England during the reign of Richard I. Alf, a monk at St. Ruan’s Abbey, is an elfin changeling left there as a baby, and despite his fair looks and that he never seems to age, only a few are aware of or suspect his true nature. When an injured rider arrives at the abbey one evening, it becomes Alf’s turn to play the part of messenger and ambassador to Richard I in order to prevent war among neighboring lands.

Although I wasn't completely wowed, I like Judith Tarr and I’m looking forward to reading the next part in the series.

Rating: 3/5 Further reading: Tarr's homepage Judith Tarr (wiki)

I finally got around to reading this book after pocketrebel recommended it several years ago, and I wish I'd taken it up sooner!

This is the colossal story of how the fictitious, 12th-century Kingsbridge Cathedral in England was dreamed of, designed, built, rebuilt and finally achieved its ultimate glory. The entire cast of characters, down to the very mundane aspects of their lives, is painted realistically and in great detail. I really appreciated that the author poured his heart and soul into telling the entire story, despite it resulting in a quite lengthy and intimidating book. I reveled in the amount of detail offered -- it only served to fascinate me further about this time period. The only thing that could have improved the story is if Kingsbridge Cathedral had been real.

Rating: 5/5 Further reading: Follett's homepage Ken Follett (wiki)