The international bestseller now in paperback. It is 1911, and the coronation day of King George V. Thirteen year old Billy Williams begins his first day in the filthy coal pits of a Welsh mine. The Williams are linked by romance to the Fitzherberts, aristocratic coal-mine owners. Lady Fitzherbert falls in love with Walter, a spy at the German Embassy in London. Their destiny is entangled with that of an aide to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and to two Russian brothers, whose plans to emigrate to America fall foul of war and revolution. And so the Century Trilogy begins ...

Ken Follett was twenty-seven when he wrote EYE OF THE NEEDLE, an award-winning thriller that became an international bestseller. After writing several more successful thrillers he surprised everyone with THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH, about the building of a cathedral in the Middle Ages, which continues to captivate millions of readers all over the world. His last book was the long-awaited sequel, WORLD WITHOUT END, a number one bestseller in the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Spain and France.