The evening and the morning. The prequel to "The pillars of the Earth".

From the bestselling author Ken Follett, The Evening and the Morning is a historical epic that will end where The Pillars of the Earth begins. A TIME OF CONFLICT It is 997 CE, the end of the Dark Ages, and  England faces attacks from the Welsh in the west and the Vikings in the east. Life is hard, and those with power wield it harshly, bending  justice according to their will ? often in conflict with the king. With his grip on the country fragile and with no clear rule of law, chaos and bloodshed reign. THREE LIVES INTERTWINED Into this uncertain  world three people come to the fore: a young boatbuilder, who dreams of a better future when a devastating Viking raid shatters the life that he and the woman he loves hoped for; a Norman noblewoman, who follows her beloved husband across the sea to a new land only to find her life there shockingly different; and a capable monk at Shiring Abbey, who dreams of transforming his humble abbey into a centre of learning admired throughout Europe. THE DAWN OF A NEW AGE Now, with England at the dawn of the Middle Ages, these three people will each come into dangerous conflict with a ruthless bishop, who will do anything to increase his wealth and power, in an epic tale of ambition  and rivalry, death and birth, and love and hate. Thirty years ago we were introduced to Kingsbridge in The Pillars of the Earth, and now in  this masterful prequel international bestseller Ken Follett will take  us on a journey into a rich past, which will end where his masterpiece begins.