After rolling his car down an embankment a man lies in hospital with severe burns to most of his body. He endures his pain, his disfigurement, and the excruciating treatments to remove his dead and rotting skin only in the hope of getting well enough to be able to end his life. But then Marianne Engel - sculptor of gargoyles - appears. She is convinced she nursed him when he was burned once before, long ago. And she unravels a tale of their meeting in 14th century Germany at the monastery of Engelthal. Weaving stories within the story - fables of love in Japan, Iceland, Italy and England - Marianne slowly brings beauty and love into his life. The Gargoyle is a wild, brilliant, beautiful journey, sweeping across centuries and continents. When it ends you'll want to read it again.