'The Prisoner' recounts the Life of the Apostle Paul, in a fresh and different way. Paul's life story is shared through various conversations he has with visitors as they come to see him in his prison in Rome.
This historical fiction is set late in Paul's life - mostly during his "first" Roman imprisonment. Paul was a Roman citizen and so he did have some rights. He could keep a "slave" (Luke, his friend) and he had considerable freedom to see visitors. The life of Paul is shared with the reader, in a patchwork mosaic. The reader becomes a bit of an "eavesdropper" on the very private and detailed conversations Paul has with dear friends. Paul's deepest feelings and his reflections on moral and theological topics are shared through this framework.
As different visitors come to him, they reminisce about their times together. Through this story the reader not only comes to know Paul better, but also meets other New Testament characters as well (Luke, Mark, Simon-Peter, Timothy, Prisca, and numerous others).
As memories are shared, we also hear the tragic stories of the murders of Barnabas (the early disciple who helped Paul into ministry) and James (the brother of Jesus).
The life of Paul is historical fiction and so there is an element of poetic licence that the writer has used to create the story. For the readers who are inclined to want to know just what is actual history and what is speculation, the author provides a useful Appendix at the end of the book. It gives the historical evidence for some parts of the story, and admits to when certain things were just 'made up' to flesh out the narrative. He does argue, however, that even the 'made up' parts are possible.
Jim Reiher lives in Melbourne Australia. He has four adult children and lots of grandchildren. Jim writes both fiction and non-fiction.
Regarding most of his non-fiction, Jim's serious side comes out, although sometimes he writes his non-fiction with humor, too ('Confessions of a Christian Magician' is a good example of that). Jim is a respected Australian Biblical scholar, with a MA in Theology with Honors, and 13 years of full time lecturing in Bible Colleges. Jim has published a number of books on topics ranging from Tarot Cards, to the Equality of Women in the Church, to how politics works in Australia. He has also written a number of commentaries on different New Testament books and letters: the Epistle of James, the Book of Acts, and most recently the Gospel of Mark.
Jim enjoys a nice quiet walk in 'the middle of no where'; a good movie; a good book; playing ten-pin bowling; writing; and spending time with his children and grandchildren.
