The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet

Today I finished this book. I had been wanting to read it for a long time.
I practically couldn't put it down, even though it's almost 800 pages long. It's one of these meaty epics that are so hard to find now.
The pillars of the earth are the cathedrals, and the story is set when the first cathedrals were being constructed, around 1150. The center of the story is Kingsbridge Cathedral, and the lives of the people who constructed it. It's also set during the fight between Maud and Stephen for the throne of England, a time when there was no law in the country and the powerful could get away with murder.
The story is focused in 4 people: Father Philip, the new prior of Kingsbridge, who wants to construct a new cathedral; Tom Builder, a mason whose lifelong dream has been to construct a cathedral; Jack, Tom's stepson, who is highly intelligent and develops a passion for cathedrals, and Aliena, the earl's daughter.
They have to fight against the most evil villains: Waleran Bigod, the new bishop, who hates Philip and has sworn to prevent the cathedral's construction; and William Hamleigh, Aliena's former suitor, who is obsessed with her and wants to destroy her and her family.
As the power shifts between Maud and Stephen, so changes the monks and the noblemen alliances.

After finishing it, i'm gonna read "World without end", the sequel.