Fire from Heaven
A Novel of Alexander the Great: A Virago Modern Classic
$26.30
- Paperback
448 pages
- Release Date
30 September 2014
Summary
‘The Alexander Trilogy contains some of Renault’s finest writing. Lyrical, wise, compelling: the novels are a wonderful imaginative feat’ SARAH WATERS
‘The Alexandriad is one of the twentieth century’s most unexpectedly original works of art’ GORE VIDAL
In the first novel of her stunning trilogy, Mary Renault vividly imagines the life of Alexander the Great, the charismatic leader whose drive and ambition created a legend.
Alexander’s beauty, strength and defiance were…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781844089574 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 1844089576 |
| Author: | Mary Renault, Tom Holland |
| Publisher: | Little, Brown Book Group |
| Imprint: | Virago Press Ltd |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Number of Pages: | 448 |
| Release Date: | 30 September 2014 |
| Weight: | 320g |
| Dimensions: | 196mm x 126mm x 28mm |
| Series: | Virago Modern Classics |
You Can Find This Book In
What They're Saying
Critics Review
Mary Renault is a shining light to both historical novelists and their readers. She does not pretend the past is like the present, or that the people of ancient Greece were just like us. She shows us their strangeness; discerning, sure-footed, challenging our values, piquing our curiosity, she leads us through an alien landscape that moves and delights us
The Alexandriad is one of the twentieth century’s most unexpectedly original works of art - Gore VidalThis is not just a novel: it’s also the best imagining we are ever likely to have of a man who tore up history. The language may seem a bit florid at first - a little too “historical novel” - but set all snobbery aside: this is wonderful, scholarly, top-flight stuff. - GuardianThe Alexander Trilogy contains some of Renault’s finest writing. Lyrical, wise, compelling: the novels are a wonderful imaginative feat - Sarah WatersThe Alexander Trilogy stands as one of the most important works of fiction in the 20th century … it represents the pinnacle of [Renault’s] career … Renault’s skill is in immersing us in their world, drawing us into its strangeness, its violence and beauty. It’s a literary conjuring trick like all historical fiction - it can only ever be an approximation of the truth. But in Renault’s hands, the trick is so convincing and passionately conjured. - The TimesAbout The Author
Mary Renault
Mary Renault (1905-1983) was born in London and educated at St Hughs, Oxford. She trained as a nurse at Oxford’s Radcliffe Infirmary, where she met her lifelong partner, Julie Mullard. Her first novel, Purposes of Love, was published in 1937. In 1948, after North Face won a MGM prize worth $150,000, she and Mullard emigrated to South Africa. There, Renault was able to write forthrightly about homosexual relationships for the first time - in her masterpiece, The Charioteer (1953), and then in her first historical novel, The Last of the Wine (1956). Renault’s vivid novels set in the ancient world brought her worldwide fame. In 2010 Fire From Heaven was shortlisted for the Lost Booker of 1970.
Returns
This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.