TRAVELS IN ELYSIUM
Plato’s metaphysical Atlantis mystery plays out on an archaeological dig on the island of Santorini
It was the chance of a lifetime. A dream job in the southern Aegean. Apprentice to the great archaeologist Marcus Huxley, lifting a golden civilisation from the dead... Yet trading rural England for the scarred volcanic island of Santorini, 22‐year old Nicholas Pedrosa is about to blunder into an ancient mystery that will threaten his liberty, his life, even his most fundamental concepts of reality.
Available in paperback and ebook formats
‘Then chalk it up to experience, Mr Pedrosa.
Trust no one. Believe no one. Question everything.
Remember, there is nothing here you can take at face value...
No — not even yourself.’
An island that blew apart with the force of 100,000 atomic bombs... A civilisation prised out of the ash, its exquisite frescoes bearing a haunting resemblance to Plato’s lost island paradise, Atlantis... An archaeologist on a collision course with a brutal police state... A death that may have been murder... And a string of inexplicable events entwining past and present with bewildering intensity... Can this ancient conundrum be understood before it engulfs them all?
‘This extraordinary novel, part murder mystery, part metaphysical thriller, kept me guessing until the very last page. The intellectual duel between the troubled hero and his ruthless mentor is mesmerising. William Azuski’s treatment of the Atlantis legend is completely original and I have rarely read a novel with such a strong sense of place. The bizarre landscapes of Santorini and the daily lives of its people, both ancient and modern, are vividly evoked. Anyone who enjoys the work of Umberto Eco, Orhan Pamuk or Carlos Ruiz Zafón should try this book.’
— Geraldine Harris, author, Egyptologist, and a member of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford.
About the author
William Azuski was born in the United Kingdom, and is of British and Yugoslav descent. Travelling widely through the Mediterranean since childhood, his frequent sojourns in Greece included several months on Santorini in the 1970s, an experience that provided firsthand experience for this exceptional novel’s local setting. Writing as William Miles Johnson, Azuski is also author of the critically‐acclaimed The Rose‐Tinted Menagerie, an Observer Book of the Year (nonfiction), and Making a Killing, an end of the world satire, both titles recently republished by Iridescent. Further details on Amazon Author Central.
Praise from publishing industry insiders
— editors, reviewers, agents
“...brilliant — fast‐paced, exciting and written with real style...”
“...a joy to read...”
“...echoes of John Fowles’ magnificent novel ‘The Magus’...”
“[An] enviable storytelling skill, [a] genuine talent...”
“...one of the most memorable manuscripts I’ve ever read.”
“[Azuski makes] excellent use of the period in which the story is set (the years of the brutal Junta) to infuse the whole book with a sense of tension and danger.”
“I was completely immersed in this amazing tale. Brilliant — the concept, the language, the imagery, the mystery.”
“[Azuski has] used Plato and the Atlantis legend/allegory in a truly original way... [He has] that rare thing, a distinctive voice as a writer. Unlike most thrillers, Travels in Elysium will make people think.”
Publishing info
Title: Travels in Elysium
Author: William Azuski
Format: Quality paperback and ebook
Pages: 540 (paperback edition)
ISBN: 978-3-9524015-2-1 (Paperback)
ISBN: 978-3-9524015-3-8 (Amazon Kindle mobi)
ISBN: 978-3-9524015-4-5 (epub)
Available: Paperback from all good bookshops. Kindle version from Amazon. Epub from iBookstore or Kobo.
Publication date: May 2013
Publisher: Iridescent Publishing
Classification: Fiction
Contact us: