The Lord of the Last Days (First U.S. Edition)

Placing readers within the context of Spain one thousand years ago, an epic work finds Alfonso of Spain, a Christian, and his Muslim twin brother, Abd Allah of Cordova, struggling for control over a divided nation.

Mexican diplomat, poet and novelist Aridjis (1492) evokes medieval Spain in this intriguing tale of apocalyptic obsession and war between Christians and Muslims. The narrator is Alfonso de Leon, "scribe and illuminator of the Apocalypse," a monk whose monastery faces imminent destruction by Muslim raiders led by Abd Allah, aka the Black Rider, Alfonso's twin brother. Swelled with the notion of himself as messiah, Alfonso both awaits and fears the inevitable confrontation with his brother, which may decide the religious and political fate of Spain. Meanwhile, Alfonso must fend off Isidoro, a false messiah who pronounces the names of his disciples backwards, and at the same time must confront his own, less than monastic desire for the daughter of a strange local woman. While Aridjis shows a poet's ear for language, his narrative demands patience; individual chapters (or "Visions," as they're called) are strangely disconnected, leaving the plot somewhat adrift. Readers who persevere will discover a richly recreated historical world enveloped in dogma, sustained by faith and inhabited by people who view a historical conflict as the final battle between the forces of Light and the forces of Darkness.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In an apocalyptic retelling of Cain and Abel, Aridjis re-creates Spain three centuries into its reconquest from the Moors. Aridjis, the author of four other translated works, most recently 1492 (LJ 5/1/91), captures the flavor of those colorful events in Leon, the capital at the time. The writing is supported by well-researched documentation, and a profusion of characters, both verifiable and fictitious, swarm through the chapters (appropriately labeled visions). The internecine rivalry between the Christian narrator and his twin Muslim brother climaxes in a predictable Armageddon, which readers may find relevant in the twilight of this millennium. A readable translation of a 1994 best seller in Mexico and Spain; definitely recommended. [For a review of Aridjis's Antologia poetica, a collection in Spanish of his poetry since 1960, see En Espa?ol, LJ 7/95.?Ed.]?Lawrence Olszewski, OCLC, Dublin, Ohi.
-?Lawrence Olszewski, OCLC, Dublin, Ohio
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In the new mystical and metaphorical blend of legend and history from the renowned Mexican author of the highly acclaimed 1492, the fates of twin brothers separated as children become inextricably entwined as Christians and Moors wage battle for the heart and soul of the Iberian Peninsula. Narrated by Alfonso de Leon, a Christian monk and scribe, the series of divinations and visions of which this novel consists opens in the year 1000. The first millennium is waning; the second, preparing to dawn. During this sacred and transitory period, Alfonso records many portentous encounters with his twin, Abd Allah of Cordoba, a fiercely dedicated Muslim who has undertaken a symbolic quest to slay his brother. When the brothers inevitably meet in mortal combat, their personal rivalry parallels and reflects the spiritual and cultural gulf that irrevocably divides the Christian and Muslim faiths. Margaret Flanagan