Well, as I began this book I was struck by how wonderful it was! I felt that the monk Philip was a very good portrayal of a monk, and I was positively impacted by his faith, and the other characters were very good as well. All in all this book is a 5 star book up to the point at which the Hamleighs overtake the Earldom of Shiring. After that, the book very slowly starts to decline, but there is still a lot of book after that point, and so it declines to a 3-star. This book is magnificent, but while it can't be cut down, it's just too long. I was completely bored by the time Aliena and Jack come back from France, and furthermore, monks and priests both know quite a bit about love, but Follet at two points claims that they do not. (Of course, he could be talking solely about romantic love, but it just bothered me.)
All in all this book is worth the read if you have the stamina for it!