The Gargoyle

By: Andrew Davidson

Narrated by: Lincoln Hoppe

Length: 19 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

An extraordinary debut novel of love that survives the fires of hell and transcends the boundaries of time.

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 27 sculptures left to complete - and her time on earth will be finished.

Already an international literary sensation, The Gargoyle is an Inferno for our time. It will have you believing in the impossible.

©2008 Andrew Davidson (P)2008 Random House, Inc.

French fried porn star!!

I was initially very grossed out when the author describes the car accident, but the story is fascinating and you don't really know where it is going to end up. Just get past the first chapter. well written and spoken book.

Be sad for a long time

This book is tough. brutal. Prepare your self. Not your typical romance. Learned a lot about burn treatment and suicide.

Different

This book was very odd...but VERY interesting! I loved it, but it's hard to describe why. Recommend for anyone up for something intense and different!

Masterful beyond words!

This is the standard by which five stars should be compared against. I Will never again give any book or audio five stars unless it is written, told, and performed as well as this masterfully written piece of art. Thank you for the experience!

Very different love story

Gargoyle is the love story of a man (whose name we never learn), terribly disfigured in an auto accident and resultant fire, and the woman, Maryanne, who befriends him and who may (or may not) be schizophrenic. Maryanne believes they were lovers in a long-ago past life and possibly throughout the ages until the present. The very best parts of the story concerned their long history together. She believes they are simply continuing where they left off, and you, like me, may end up believing that, too. I'm not at all attracted to the typical romance novel where boy meets girl, romance sizzles, they fight, solve mysteries, bite people's necks, (whatever) but finally live happily ever-after. Gargoyle was nothing like this. It was very well-written and read, intense, thought-provoking, funny at times, sad at times. I loved it!

Be still my heart!

Absolutely beautifully written and narrated! My heart will never be the same. Best love story I've read in years. So deep that it not only devoured my heart but my soul, as well. Bravo!

The ending made the book

I liked the book and how the writer could paint pictures with words, but wasn't fully enthralled until the last little bit.

Captivating, one of a kind

I'm not a review writer but this is now my new favorite book. A great story, well told.

Brilliant, Riveting & Entertaining—you MUST read/ listen to this book!!!

Andrew Davidson’s “The Gargoyle” is a masterpiece. The prose is flawless. Davidson weaves his prose like a surgeon who has somehow managed to repack an intestine into an abdominal cavity with the same exacting precision with which it had appeared in the patient before the surgery. His prose is incredibly elegant, both lean and sumptuous at once. His main story, as well as all the smaller stories with which he has peppered the central narrative, are strikingly imaginative. I wanted this book to go on forever. Best thing I’ve listened to in ages. Oh and the narrator is quite good too. Try it, you won’t be sorry!

Incredible One Time Author

Can you believe that this author wrote one, and only one, book? How could someone who is so incredibly talented, who writes with such clarity, depth, and detail create this one story and be done? Take the time to listen to this story which involves past and present stories, stories that overlap time, location, and lives of many and few people. simultaneously. Although there is a love story (many intertwined, in fact) there is so much more to this story the will pique your interest in history, language, food, and friendships.