The Communion of the Saint
Alan David Justice
Read by Alan David Justice
Clio Griffin, an out-of-work academic with an attitude and a tendency toward sarcasm, travels to England to interview for a last-chance job--as the pet historian for an antiquarian group who hope to use her to build the reputation of the local saint--Alban, the first Christian martyr of Britain.
No sooner does she arrive than the saint, dead for seventeen centuries, starts talking to her--out loud. The voice is hard enough for Clio to take; her mother, in her final illness, had lost touch with reality, and Clio fears the same fate. When the saint drags her unwilling into the past, to live the lives of people long dead, Clio fights to hold on to her reason. At the same time, in "ordinary" life, she starts to define--and have defined for her--a place in the life of the town. The resident mystic takes a liking to her; when she dies, she leaves everything to Clio. The sexton of the cathedral becomes a malevolent presence who threatens Clio at unforseen intervals. She falls in love with an Anglican priest on the cathedral staff, who is jealous of the very mystical experiences Clio struggles to deny.
When the the past itself comes to life in Clio's present, in the person of a medieval plague victim who appears in her living room, Clio must choose between her rationalism and her compassion for the dying young man. Her decision lands her in a mental hospital, where she has to confront both the fear of losing her reason and the reality of her experiences.
When Clio gains her release from the psychiatric ward, her psychiatrist, like many others, asks her to pray for him. As she re-enters the community, she finds that other people, whom she doesn't even know, have been taking care of the cottage left her by the mystic. When her employer is injured in an auto accident, Clio's half-believed prayers seem to lead to a miraculous healing.
Throughout the story, past and present are shuffled like two halves of the same deck of cards. With each descent into history, Clio learns about other lives. With each return to the present, she has to make sense of her own life in light of what she's learned.
THE COMMUNION OF THE SAINT (the title is a paraphrase of a line from the Apostle's Creed) is a novel of past and present, skepticism and belief.
The story question: how does a modern, skeptical, rational person fit the irrational, the supernatural, into her life and still make some kind of sense of it all?
The answer: not easily.
This book comes from Scribl.com. Visit Scribl to support the author or learn how to self-publish your own audiobook.
Chapters
Reviews
By: Mary Beckett
Excellent book on so many levels - the story itself is very strong both as a historically based book and on the level of character and plot development. It seemed like it was written to be read aloud - especially the way it was read so beautifully on this podcast ...
By: mrben
Really enjoyed listening to this book - not quite finished just yet - different to my normal fare, but a great listen all the same. There are a couple of details about the UK that should probably be rectified, not least that the accelerator pedal in the UK is still ...
By: Miaxara
I downloaded this book to listen to while I jogged, as an incentive to get me off my duff and "just do it"... But I enjoyed it so much and became so engrossed with the story that I wound up listening to it during my commute, and everytime I went ...
By: sueper
I'm enjoying the book but a couple of things have bothered me and one in particular had me quite angry. The foot pedals on an English car are the same way around as in the US Your hair plait rhymes with cat not plate. Nobody ever says Two and a ...
By: JaneInPA
About half way thru and enjoying the rollercoaster ride thru the centuries! Being from Phila., the references ring pretty true, including the nod to Maria Goretti (although I too was a Girls' High girl)...but nobody I know wears "tennies" (laughing). Thank you for an intriguing story.
By: sueper
Oh and I would like to find the music you used on magnatune but cant make out the names of the artists from the podcast and they are not in the written notes. Could we have them again here pretty please
By: craigr1971
An excellent book, congratulations! The story was well thought out, well told, and well read. The descriptions and the religious details were wonderful. Most importantly, the characters were developed expertly, and they were believable.
By: sueper
I mean the authors music. He tells the album and artists names at the beginning but its hard to catch and I cant work out who its by.