Marlowe Papers

*WINNER OF THE DESMOND ELLIOTT PRIZE 2013* On May 30th 1593 a celebrated young playwright was killed in a tavern brawl in London. That at least was the official version. Now Christopher Marlowe reveals the truth: that his 'death' was an elaborate ruse to avoid being convicted of heresy; that he was spirited across the Channel to live on in lonely exile; that he continued to write plays and poetry hiding behind the name of a colourless man from Stratford - one William Shakespeare. With the grip of a thriller and the emotional force of a sonnet this remarkable novel in verse gives voice to a man who was brilliant passionate and mercurial. A cobbler's son who counted nobles among his friends a spy in the Queen's service a fickle lover and a declared religious sceptic he was always courting trouble. Memoir love letter confession settling of accounts and a cry for recognition as the creator of some of the most sublime works in the English language The Marlowe Papers brings Christopher Marlowe and his era to vivid life. Written by a poet and scholar it is a work of exceptional art erudition and imagination.