Mefisto

"A novel of virtuosic scope."--The New York Times A Faustian fever dream of numbers, knowledge, and the darkness that lurks beyond comprehension. Gabriel Swan is a math prodigy obsessed with the idea of order. He sees the world not in words, but in numbers. Compelled to find the elusive code behind life itself, he plunges into a search for absolute meaning. But when he meets Felix--a charismatic, otherworldly stranger who seems to hold the answers--Gabriel's journey takes a darker turn. He becomes involved with a mesmerizing trio formed by sad, obese Mr. Kasperl, who is like someone "from a country where no one else lived"; lovely, mute Sophie; and the Mephistophelian Felix, whose appearances always foretoken disaster. In an abandoned mansion, their changing relations, and Gabriel's quest for a "formula that will reduce the disorder of common things > Inspired by the legend of Faust, Mefisto is a dazzling, philosophical novel about genius, obsession, and the limits of rationality. With his trademark prose--elegant, luminous, and hypnotic--Banville transforms myth into a haunting study of human fragility and the borders of reality.

Pages: 240, Paperback, David R. Godine Publisher