1320Elements

21.12.25, Winter Solstice. The shortest day, the longest night. The world turns and darkness gives way to light. The perfect time, I think, to release a story about the primal struggle between those two opposing forces. 'The Fantastical Historie of Milos Stephanos' will be available only from 1320Books. In the meantime, read on to find out more:

The Fantastical Historie of Milos Stephanos is a metaphysical romp, a ‘wild hunt’ across borders, and a pilgrimage through the back-pages of European literature. In this bold re-telling of Faust, a devil’s advocate recruits a suitable ingenue for “The Great Purpose”. Unfortunately, his amoral protégé slips the leash and conjures hellish plans of his own.

The Faustian character is Krystian Krystenssen, a mercenary youth with a blank slate where his soul should be. The role of Mephistopheles is taken by Mr Milos Stephanos, an alchemist, a diplomat, an entrepreneur, and the narrator of this story.
In this book, Mr Stephanos is a reluctant protagonist, a witty narrator, and a put-upon hostage to fortune. The supernatural elements dominate, but are tempered by the historical and literary references made throughout the work.

Faust is sometimes considered to be a satanic horror archetype, but the flavour of the original folktales is often lost in the myriad versions of the legend. Scottish writer M. Stephen Clark now seeks to reclaim Faust as both a morality tale and a picaresque piece of gothic literary fiction.