THE GARGOYLE

Author: Andrew Davidson ISBN: 9780385524940 8/2008 FICTION Publisher: DOUBLE DAY

The narrator of The Gargoyle is a very contemporary cynic, physically beautiful and sexually adept, who dwells in the moral vacuum that is modern life. As the book opens, he is driving along a dark road when he is distracted by what seems to be a flight of arrows. He crashes into a ravine and suffers horrible burns over much of his body. As he recovers in a burn ward, undergoing the tortures of the damned, he awaits the day when he can leave the hospital and commit carefully planned suicide—for he is now a monster in appearance as well as in soul. A beautiful and compelling, but clearly unhinged, sculptress of gargoyles by the name of Marianne Engel appears at the foot of his bed and insists that they were once lovers in medieval Germany. In her telling, he was a badly injured mercenary and she was a nun and scribe in the famed monastery of Engelthal who nursed him back to health. As she spins their tale in Scheherazade fashion and relates equally mesmerizing stories of deathless love in Japan, Iceland, Italy, and England, he finds himself drawn back to life—and, finally, in love. He is released into Marianne's care and takes up residence in her huge stone house. But all is not well. For one thing, the pull of his past sins becomes ever more powerful as the morphine he is prescribed becomes ever more addictive. For another, Marianne receives word from God that she has only twenty-seven sculptures left to complete—and her time on earth will be finished.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS: ^PLUS

Only a heart of stone could not be touched, even in small measure, by Andrew Davidson's THE GARGOYLE. I was completely blown away. This is a tale that goes right to the core of so many things we hold dear: faith, family and the connection between the present and the past. One of the most incredibly noteworthy things I find about this book is the fact that it is Mr. Davidson's debut novel. The writing style, flawless dialogue and stark realism, the things that make this story soar, are not typical for first-time novelists.

Life changes in a heartbeat. And while the narrator of this story has been living a tortured existence, that of a hopeless, drug-taking porn star, his existence takes a turn for the worse when he is in a horrific car crash. He is burned beyond description, but lives. Barely. He ends up in the burn ward, where one day he has a visitor. Marianne has come from the psychiatric ward. She tells him she's known him before, and has loved him for 700 years. So begins the tale of THE GARGOYLE. And, I promise you, it only gets better.

There are times when I nearly wept, this is so heartwrenching. It was impossible not to be affected by madness that brings healing, love that knows no end and the redemptive power of the human spirit. Heaven, Hell, redemption are all woven throughout... as well as three little words that may—just may—have brought this story to a different conclusion. I'll bet you think you know what they are, but I can assure you that your guess is probably wrong. You'll have to read THE GARGOYLE to find out if your three words matched the author's.

THE GARGOYLE by Andrew Davidson is one of the few books that won't leave my bookshelf—ever. I will recommend it over and over again, and I know I'll read it again soon, but take it away to make room for something else? I just don't see it happening. And honestly, I was so amazed by this first novel that I'm almost scared to see what comes next from this gifted author. THE GARGOYLE is so heartfelt I can't even imagine what Mr. Davidson's second book is going to be like, but I assure you, it's going to be on my reading list.

Kay James