I attempted to read this book when it was first published, after I enjoyed reading Pillars of the Earth, by the same author. At the time it struck me as too violent, so I put it aside. Just finished this whopper of a book, one thousand pages long. A group of youngsters in the area of Kingsbridge are playing, and one of the girls, Caris, whose father is a wealthy wool merchant, leads them into the forest. In those days, the early 1300’s, the forest was where outlaws lived and children were absolutely forbidden to go there alone. But Caris was headstrong and confident, and the other children followed. Two brothers, Ralph and Merthin, and a young pickpocket, Gwenda, went along. Gwenda had a three-legged dog she called Hop, who followed her everywhere. Once in the forest, Merthin wanted to show off a new bow he had made, but could not summon the strength to launch the arrow more than a few feet. His younger brother Ralph, however, easily fit the arrow to the bow and promptly killed Gwenda’s little dog. About this time, they see someone coming, and fearing outlaws, hide in some bushes nearby. Instead of outlaws, the children see a knight lean against a nearby tree, clearly exhausted. Two men approach and demand he surrender a letter, but the knight attacks. At this point Ralph notches another arrow and kills one of the men. The rest of the children run away except for Merthin, who sees the knight is seriously injured, but has killed the other man who attacked him. The injured knight enlists Merthin’s help to hide the bodies, then to dig a hole at the base of the tree and bury a pouch inside. He tells Merthin that he must keep the secret of what has happened, or he will be killed.
Back in the city Gwenda goes with Caris to her home, and is given a puppy. She stays for dinner even though she is not of the same class as her new friend, and she and Caris begin a friendship that will last for decades. Gwenda must return to her home where her father is a known thief and where he routinely sends her out to steal on market days and fairs. When things become really desperate he trades her to a man for a cow, and Gwenda is tied up like livestock and led away. Her father has told her the man is going to marry her, but just outside of town he turns off into the forest, making his way to a group of outlaws camped there. There are many men there but only a few women, so she knows what they plan. But Gwenda is tough and determined and with a bit of luck, escapes and heads back to Kingsbridge. She is followed by the man who traded a cow for her, and just as she reaches the bridge leading into the city, it collapses. She and her new owner fall into the river below, neither of them knowing how to swim. But Gwenda learns from her little dog how to stay afloat, and in all the confusion of hundreds of people, carts and livestock all thrashing about she is able to get away from her pursuer. When he tries to follow, she attacks him, holding his head under the water until he is dead. No one sees this event, and she is relieved, but upon returning home she realizes that her father will only sell her again if she remains there.
The knight who buried the letter ends up becoming a monk in the cathedral. Merthin becomes an apprentice to the town builder, and Ralph enters the service of the Earl of Shiring as a squire, hoping to become a knight himself. The loss of the bridge means the town’s merchants, and indeed the proiry which in this case, owns the town, will go bankrupt since traders can no longer reach the market, and will take their business to other nearby towns. Merthin convinces the merchants that the design of the old bridge was faulty, but he can build a bridge that will not fall. Caris becomes her father’s right hand woman in the wool business, but she also is an apprentice of sorts for a local healer, a woman who makes medicines for the townspeople. Monks run a hospital, and a few are trained at Oxford. Mostly what they prescribe is bleeding, cupping and prayer.
The story proceeds from these events, the children in the forest, the collapse of the bridge, Caris’ interest in medicines, Gwenda’s fearlessness and determination, Ralph’s physical ability and lack of morals, and most of all, Merthin’s ability to build. At times I was disappointed at the sheer misery of the lives of the people during this time, the story takes place from about 1330 – 1360. The plague comes to the city, and even in this book, which was published in 2008, long before the pandemic, nuns were covering their faces with linen masks when nursing those who were dying from the disease. My understanding was that the disease was carried by fleas but I don’t know about contagion between people once contracted. The story was compelling, with the characters developing over many years. A good book, but quite lengthy. Maybe the author is trying to portray life in those times with danger around every corner and requiring guile, usually, to make it through. The church and the nobility between them ruled almost every aspect of daily life. Not an easy time for anyone.