The Manual of Darkness

(Paperback)

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Description

The world's best magician is going blind, but is there a story that can save him

Victor Losa has spent his life studying magic. His mentor, Mario Galvan, taught him not only the practical aspects of the art, but also its history and the lives of famous Victorian magicians such as Hoffman, Maskelyne and Cooke and the most enigmatic historical figure of all, Peter Grouse, a pickpocket who decided to challenge the best magicians of the day.

But suddenly things change for Victor Losa, just as he is proclaimed the world's best magician. A light appears in his eye, but this is no magic trick - he is diagnosed with a rare degenerative condition of the optical nerve. In short, he is rapidly going blind.

As he loses his sight, Victor finds that there are new ways to conjure the world through stories of the past, present and future. And finally he learns the secret behind his mentor's teachings.

Reviews

The Spanish author's decision to essentially split the book into two parts... is a neat sleight of hand that gives a book an unexpected impetus. * THE SUNDAY BUSINESS POST *
Rooted in extensive research in the history of magic and sleight of hand, the story that evolves is one of loneliness and discovery. * BIG ISSUE IN THE NORTH *

Author Bio

Enrique de Heriz was born in Barcelona in 1964. He has worked as an editor and translator and has undertaken translations to Spanish of writers such as Annie Proulx, Nadine Gordimer, Stephen King, Peter Carey and John Fowles. Travelling, music and the lives of magicians in the Victorian era are his main interests.