The Flame and the Wind (1967)
John Blackburn
With a new introduction by Greg Gbur
Book Description
The year is 37 A.D., and Rome faces a dangerous threat in the form of a new religion whose doctrines could undermine the entire foundation of the Empire. Sextus Marcellus Ennius, one of Rome's top spies, is dispatched to Jerusalem to investigate this cult and discredit its founder, a criminal named Jesus-bar-Joseph, who was rumoured to possess supernatural powers and reputedly rose from the dead after his execution. But as Sextus searches for the truth, he will be faced with dangers on all sides: the intrigues of the mad Emperor Caligula, traitors among his fellow Romans, and murderous religious zealots. And when he finally unravels the mystery, the truth is more terrible than he could have ever imagined ...
Regarded by many critics as the best British horror writer of his time, John Blackburn (1923-1993) was the author of nearly thirty thrillers that blended the genres of horror, mystery, and science fiction in unique and inventive ways. The Flame and the Wind (1967), his most ambitious work, is an epic historical novel infused with elements of mystery and horror, told in the page-turning style for which he is known. This edition includes a new introduction by Greg Gbur and Bill Botten's striking black and white dust jacket art from the first edition.
John Blackburn
With a new introduction by Greg Gbur
Book Description
The year is 37 A.D., and Rome faces a dangerous threat in the form of a new religion whose doctrines could undermine the entire foundation of the Empire. Sextus Marcellus Ennius, one of Rome's top spies, is dispatched to Jerusalem to investigate this cult and discredit its founder, a criminal named Jesus-bar-Joseph, who was rumoured to possess supernatural powers and reputedly rose from the dead after his execution. But as Sextus searches for the truth, he will be faced with dangers on all sides: the intrigues of the mad Emperor Caligula, traitors among his fellow Romans, and murderous religious zealots. And when he finally unravels the mystery, the truth is more terrible than he could have ever imagined ...
Regarded by many critics as the best British horror writer of his time, John Blackburn (1923-1993) was the author of nearly thirty thrillers that blended the genres of horror, mystery, and science fiction in unique and inventive ways. The Flame and the Wind (1967), his most ambitious work, is an epic historical novel infused with elements of mystery and horror, told in the page-turning style for which he is known. This edition includes a new introduction by Greg Gbur and Bill Botten's striking black and white dust jacket art from the first edition.
reviews
'This is an historical novel in the grand manner ... A lot of research must have gone into the work, and the result is wholly satisfactory.’ – The Guardian
‘The versatile John Blackburn has deserted one kind of horror for quite another, diabolism for divinity.’ – Times Literary Supplement
‘An accomplished writer.’ – The Spectator
‘The versatile John Blackburn has deserted one kind of horror for quite another, diabolism for divinity.’ – Times Literary Supplement
‘An accomplished writer.’ – The Spectator
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BOOK DETAILS
ISBN: 1939140706 ISBN-13: 978-1939140708 $17.99 US, 230 pp. Trade paper Published 2013 |
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AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
John Blackburn was born in 1923 in the village of Corbridge, England, the second son of a clergyman. He started attending Haileybury College near London in 1937, but his education was interrupted by the onset of World War II; the shadow of the war, and that of Nazi Germany, would later play a role in many of his works. He served as a radio officer during the war in the Mercantile Marine from 1942 to 1945, and resumed his education afterwards at Durham University, earning his bachelor’s degree in 1949. Blackburn taught for several years after that, first in London and then in Berlin, and married Joan Mary Clift in 1950. Returning to London in 1952, he took over the management of Red Lion Books.
It was there that Blackburn began writing, and the immediate success in 1958 of his first novel, A Scent of New-Mown Hay, led him to take up a career as a writer full-time. He and his wife also maintained an antiquarian bookstore, a secondary career that would inform some of Blackburn’s later work. A prolific author, Blackburn would write nearly 30 novels between 1958 and 1985; most of these were horror and thrillers, but also included one historical novel set in Roman times, The Flame and the Wind (1967). He died in 1993.
It was there that Blackburn began writing, and the immediate success in 1958 of his first novel, A Scent of New-Mown Hay, led him to take up a career as a writer full-time. He and his wife also maintained an antiquarian bookstore, a secondary career that would inform some of Blackburn’s later work. A prolific author, Blackburn would write nearly 30 novels between 1958 and 1985; most of these were horror and thrillers, but also included one historical novel set in Roman times, The Flame and the Wind (1967). He died in 1993.