Set in the first years of the Christian Church, Anita Mason’s novel tells the story of Simon Magus, mentioned in Acts of the Apostles as a magician.

Simon Magus: idolater, sorcerer, seducer, necromancer, outcast and illusionist. The man who could conjure wild lions, writhing serpents, dazzling birds, pleasure gardens and shining palaces out of thin desert air. The man with the powers of a god, bound in a hungry body driven by lust and pride. Was he the Deliverer? Or had the Deliverer already died, broken on a cross at Calvary, misunderstood and forgotten by all except a sect of unlettered peasants?

Shortlisted
The Booker Prize 1983
Published by
Hamish Hamilton
Publication date
Anita Mason

Anita Mason

About the Author

Anita Mason was born in Bristol, England. She is the author of eight novels, as well as a number of short stories.
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