Books The Gargoyle

The novel follows a nameless, cynical man who survives a horrific car accident and is left severely burned and disfigured, contemplating suicide in a hospital burn unit. He is visited by Marianne Engel, an eccentric sculptress of gargoyles from the psychiatric ward, who insists they were lovers in medieval Germany.

As Marianne tells their intricate story of past lives—which spans centuries and continents including Japan, Greenland, and Italy—the narrator's disbelief begins to fade. The novel weaves together a contemporary story of recovery and the historical narrative of their shared past, ultimately exploring themes of love, redemption, suffering, and the power of storytelling to heal.