This is a long story that spans at least two decades of the protagonist's (Rob J's) life. Because the story is very long and detailed - and because other reviewers have already recited the facts - I will refrain from reiterating the facts here. (I note that Wikipedia also provides a very good overview of the facts.) In short, this is easily one of the most captivating and interesting novels I have read in my forty-one years. To quote a professional critic, it is "fast-paced, one engrossing scene unfolding into another, revealing yet another adventure, danger or discovery." I am awed by the level of research, creativity, time, and energy that went into this novel. It is with humility that I offer a few criticisms. First, I would have liked to see more evolution of Rob J's character. I found it easy to sympathize with him, but he was never fully loveable. Moreover, there were no other loveable characters in the novel. On the other hand, perhaps it speaks to Mr. Gordon's talent as an author that he could write such a long and compelling tale without creating any endearing characters. Next, although the story often requires a suspension of judgment, two of Rob J's actions were particularly unbelievable. While attending medical school in Persia (in the Middle Ages) and studying under the tutelage of the great Ibn Sina, Rob J had a sexual affair with one of Ibn Sina's wives - even though he knew that the penalty for adultery, for the male participant, was public disembowelment. In fact, one of Rob J's medical school friends, Karim, was subsequently disemboweled after he was caught having an affair with the same woman. (The woman was beheaded.) Also, Rob J had almost attained the title of physician by the time his wife, Mary, gave birth to their second child. Nonetheless, he behaved like a stereotypical modern male and could not bear to be in the house during the birth. Even though the eleventh-century Persian medical education did not seem concerned with childbirth, one would expect a medical student who is almost a doctor to stay in the room - at a minimum.
Although this was a work of fiction, I must mention two interesting contradictions about life in the Middle Ages. First, doctors in the Middle Ages -- in and outside of Persia -- were forbidden from dissecting the human body. Thus, the great physicians who taught Rob J had not even seen the inside of a human. Despite the prohibition against desecrating the human body, a man in Persia could be disemboweled for an infraction such as adultery, and a woman could have her tongue severed for speaking against Islam. Additionally, the penalty for adultery in Persia was outrageous even though the act was commonplace, prostitutes were an obvious social mainstay, and the Shah (who had four wives) could bed whomever he chose. I thought that these contradictions added to the intrigue of the story.
Although I have critiqued the novel, I heartily recommend it. The ending felt a bit rushed, but the story came full circle. I recommend the book for the adventurous, those interested in medicine, sociology/anthropology, or the mystery and intrigue of death, those interested in Persian history and the religious conflicts of the Middle Ages, and those who are simply curious and desire to read something that is almost guaranteed to be unlike any other book they have read. If the book were shorter, I would read it again. Because it's nearly 800 pages, however, I will await the film -- which is said to be in production. On the whole, it is an excellent novel and to Mr. Gordon, I say . . . Bravo!
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Alfonso Laguna
Muy interesante y documentado libro!
Reviewed in Mexico on August 16, 2020