The Apostle Killer

by Richard Beard Narrated by Jon Lindstrom

Overview

A wildly inventive, darkly suspenseful novel that pits Christ's “Passion as police procedural” (The Guardian).

Set in a hazy Middle East that seems at once ancient and modern,*The Apostle Killer*features Gallio, an aging, hardboiled investigator who has one last chance to save his career: He's got to prove Christ's resurrection was a hoax.

To uncover the conspiracy behind the so-called resurrection, Gallio figures all he needs is for one*of the apostles to crack. The only problem is that one by one, the apostles keep dying-and in ever more grotesque ways-just before Gallio gets to them.*

Racing to save both his case and the witnesses he needs to solve it, Gallio begins to suspect he's become the unwitting pawn in the plot to kill the apostles . . . but who's behind it? And to what end? As Gallio realizes even his own superiors are not to be trusted,*The Apostle Killer*transforms from a dazzling literary experiment into a moving, haunting work of art.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

07/25/2016
In this highly unusual mix of biblical stories and modern fantasy from Beard (Dry Bones), Pontius Pilate charges Cassius Gallio, the military policeman who was responsible for guarding the corpse of Jesus, with finding Jesus’s missing body. When Gallio makes no progress, Pilate orders him to increase the pressure on the disciples to talk. Gallio promises protection to Judas, but Judas winds up murdered, his death made to look like a suicide. Blamed for Judas’s death, Gallio is exiled. Gallio is later recalled to Jerusalem, the “Jesus case” is reopened, and the search for Jesus and his disciples begins anew. Though the time is now the present, most of the disciples are still alive, and Gallio joins forces with an Israeli investigator to track the survivors. The trail finally reaches John and Peter. Beard’s sharp humor drives this mind-bending, time-compressing tale. (Sept.)

From the Publisher

A Guardian and Observer Best Book of the Year

Shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize

“Darkly mysterious...A smart, sly, unpredictable novel.”—The Wall Street Journal

“Beard’s sharp humor drives this mind-bending, time-compressing tale.”—Publishers Weekly

“Brilliantly original and absurdly compelling . . . A book you’ll read in one, frantic gasp.” —Alex Preston, Observer (Best Books of the Year)

“Remarkable . . . Richly hilarious . . . confident and enchanting.” —Philip Hensher, Guardian
 
“Beard is one of those rare writers whose novels are at once radically inventive and brilliantly entertaining . . . Mysterious and affecting. Set in a Roman world that boasts air travel and motivational speakers giving talks in luxury hotels, it is as joyously original as it is a page-turner to read.” —The Daily Mail

“It is a darkly funny, virtuoso performance . . . So cleverly done it almost winks at the reader.” —Phil Baker, Sunday Times

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169324136
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/13/2016
Edition description:	Unabridged

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