Cathedral of the Sea

By Ildefonso Falcones

Betrayed and facing the Inquisition, can a stoneworker's secret love save him in medieval Barcelona?

4.2/5 Goodreads · 67,668 ratings

624 pages

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Bookroo's summary

In fourteenth-century Barcelona, Arnau Estanyol rises from peasantry to join the stoneworkers building the majestic Santa Maria del Mar cathedral. As he secretly loves a forbidden woman, betrayal leads him to the Inquisition's grasp, where he faces his brother, Joanet, now a priest. With his life hanging in the balance, will Arnau's fate be sealed by the very brother he once trusted? Amidst the backdrop of a city torn by ambition and faith, Arnau's journey intertwines love, loyalty, and the relentless pursuit of freedom. Discover the gripping tale of friendship and betrayal in a city of contrasts.

From the publisher

An unforgettable fresco of a golden age in fourteenth-century Barcelona, Cathedral of the Sea is a thrilling historical novel of friendship and revenge, plague and hope, love and war. Arnau Estanyol arrives in Barcelona to find a city dominated by the construction of the city’s great pride–the cathedral of Santa Maria del Mar–and by its shame, the deadly Inquisition. As a young man, Arnau joins the powerful guild of stoneworkers and helps to build the church with his own hands, while his best friend and adopted brother Joanet studies to become a priest. With time, Arnau prospers and falls secretly in love with a forbidden woman. But when he is betrayed and hauled before the Inquisitor, he finds himself face-to-face with Joanet. Will he lose his life just as his beloved Cathedral of the Sea is finally completed, or will his brother save him? MORE THAN TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD WORLDWIDE!

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