I have historically loved this series of Ken Follett novels, beginning with The Pillars of the Earth. As with most series, though, when authors begin adding seemingly endless sequels and prequels, the series begins to lose its charm. This novel is set in very early Britain, when tribes hunted and gathered and were just beginning to settle in villages. I can see the throughline to Pillars of the via as this novel centers on the building of stone circles (should be catnip for me!) but the dialogue is stilted and the characters two-dimensional. This one's an easy skip unless you (like me) just need to see the series through.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

An interesting pre-historical novel set in 2500 BC that gives a probable explanation for the meaning and construction of Stonehenge. Like Follett’s other historical novels, it features men and women who think ahead of their time and seek practical solutions to otherwise seemingly impossible problems. In this case, how to move giant rocks over a great distance to build a stone monument that is impervious to fire and vandalism.
I have read most of Follett’s books. This, like the others, is well written and engaging. The conflicts encountered are very similar to those of our current culture. The hope is to rise above petty cultural rivalries and entrenched ways of thinking and accomplish new things in innovative ways.

Thanks to Grand Central and Netgalley for providing the ARC of Ken Follett’s latest. Very enjoyable historical fiction, if you’re already a Follett fan, you will enjoy this. The story centers on the events leading up to the construction of a Stonehenge type site. In that way, it’s akin to The Pillars of the Earth (although I don’t think this is quite the equal to that series). Lots of smart kind people interspersed with greedy and mean villains and what feels like a plausible engineering solution for the time. Recommended

Circle of Days centers around the making of Stonehenge. In classic Ken Follett style this story is rich in historical detail with excellent character development. Like most of his story’s there are courageous and smart leaders and ugly villains. I love the morals and values of the lead characters who slowly but surely win over everyone with their valuable ideas and strong leadership abilities instead of hatred and bullying. What a breath of fresh air compared to the world we live in today.

Ken Follett is a master storyteller. From Pillars of the Earth to this seminal well-written accoubt of the building of Stonehenge. Utterly engaging and wonderfully in depth with characters you fall in love with.. Another five star from this author.

What a grand story! I believe it would make a wonderful miniseries for people like me who love ancient history and wonder, was it really like this. The characters were amazing and had me, as the reader, invested in not only what was currently happening, but what was to happen in the future. It would appear that mankind has not changed that much since prehistoric times, the same meanness and evil still exists. Ken Follett describes things so well that you can picture the moving of sarsen stones in your minds eye. An adventure worth reading!

As someone who loves historical fiction, this one from Ken Follett is so unique and interesting. Maybe it’s speculative historical fiction? Who cares. A fascinating story of ancient traditions and religions playing together. I haven’t read much Follett but knowing his name, this book lives up to it. Highly recommend.

I received a free advanced copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As usual, Follettt is able to transport the reader to a different time and place masterfully. However, the endless details about the moving, carving and placement of the stones is tedious. I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review..

Ken Follett is one of my auto buy authors. I love his work and the way he weaves historical tales through the lives of his characters. I think he is a brilliant storyteller. Circle of Days is an unique and fascinating tale of how Stonehenge came to be. I didn't connect with the characters in this book like i did in previous books but still really enjoyed it and will be purchasing a hard copy for my shelf when it releases.

Circle of Days by Ken Follett is an enjoyable and interesting historical fiction that immerses us into the creation of Stonehenge.

I enjoyed the epic Pillars of the Earth series, so I was quick to pick up this book by the same author.

I have read several updates on modern inquiries on how Stonehenge was built, so it was interesting to see it all put into a fictional viewpoint.

While this was not up to the standards that I was expecting from this author, it was still an immersive and interesting read that I seemed tackled faster than I had anticipated.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Grand Central Publishing for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 9/23/25.

I love Ken Follett's Century books and his Knightsbridge books. I love the way he describes history through the use of the characters and how they lived. However, if I were to recommend a new reader to check out his books, I probably would not tell that reader to start with Circle of Days. I did like the book, and I felt parts of it were compelling. However, I didn't connect to the characters like I did with his other books. And I skimmed through the long descriptions of Seft's struggles to create a way to carry the stones to the religious site. I thought I would be most interested in this, as I too wonder how Stonehenge was built. Too many pages of descriptions without me connecting to any of it. I also would have liked to have more three-dimensional characters. I think long-time Follett readers will enjoy this book, and I did, because I love his other books. This one was just not what I was expecting.

Ken Follett did it again! I thoroughly enjoyed this book! He does a phenomenal job writing historical fiction. He can create an elaborate and detailed story around bits and pieces of history that we may know so little about. His characters feel so intimately real. Ken Follett will always be an auto-buy author for me. I have enjoyed all of his books!

It’s one of those books that’s just easy to get into and hard to stop reading. Great for a weekend read.

I enjoyed this book but the story of building Stonehenge is not the same as history. Estimates are it took hundreds of years but this story does it in one generation. It is interesting how the book presents the stones were moved and placed

I am a huge fan of the Ken Follett series, such as Pillars of the Earth and its sequels, so I was very excited to get this preview copy from Net Galley. Sadly, this is not going to be on my list of favorites. The premise is interesting - the story behind the building of Stonehenge - but the plot fell flat for me. I did not connect with the characters, and at times felt that the story dragged, and I had trouble staying interested in the plot line. At first, I was intrigued by the story of Seft and his family, and I also enjoyed the story of Joia and the priestesses, but ultimately, the characters did not hold my interest, and the storyline was too slow. I am curious as to whether he will continue this saga as a series, and if he does, I am sure I will read them, with the hope that the plot and characters develop more than in this novel.

Ken Follett never disappoints. I have read everything he has written and this was exceptional. The build up the story etc was fantastic. Thanks for the opportunity to read.

Another mostly solid epic story by Ken Follett. I agree with other reviewers that the writing was more simplistic and repetitive compared to his other novels. It did make the seemingly long book read relatively fast. The last quarter of the story that focused on moving the stones was slow for me. Not my fave of his, but not bad either.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a story of the building of Stonehenge that managed to capture both the amazing technological feat of the stone circle and also the newness of the society that pulled it off. The daily lives of the characters could seem simple at first glance, but their tribes were on the cusp of becoming more recognizably modern. This novel did not quite have the depth and richness of Pillars of the Earth, but it was still a very satisfying read.

Thanks to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC of 'Circle of Days' by Ken Follett.

I loved 'Pillars of the Earth' and its sequels to was delighted and intrigued to see this great storyteller take on the mystery of Stonehenge.

Unfortunately I was disappointed. This is repetitive and overlong, and - for me - written at a much lower level of sophistication than I remember from 'Pillars of the Earth,' etc. It all felt overly simplistic. My mind kept interjecting with snippets of 'The Farmer and the Cowman Should be Friends' from 'Oklahoma.' It was just one thing after another with those two groups - herders and farmers - the same internal discussions and arguments between the same characters on either side and then more of the same outcomes and then nothing for a few more years.

I did really like how he incorporated all of the relevant current scientific/physical and geographic theories about how the monument was built, how the stones were transported and from where. That whole element matches the strength of those strands about cathedral building from his earlier series but everything outside of that felt labored and. as I said above, simplistic, like it was written for too low a reading age.

If this was a new author I might be giving this two stars but Follett's name carries weight so I've gone with three, though it was a stretch.

Another historical novel with interesting characters, and rich story lines. Ken Follett imagines the story around the building of Stonehenge and what life must have been like for the people of that time. In true Ken Follett fashion, he weaves a tale of good vs. evil that doesn't disappoint.