Fallen

The story of Cain, Abel, Adam and Eve—the world's original family.

Beginning with the murder of Abel by his brother, Fallen rewinds through fury and jealousy, lust and despair, right back to the bite from the apple and mankind's first taste of shame.

What drove Cain to do the unthinkable? What was the world like when it was new? Was God justified in banishing Adam and Eve from Paradise? And did the harshness of the outer world teach them not only how to survive but how to kill?

From the bones of this age-old tale, David Maine weaves a compulsively readable and startlingly modern human drama of love, betrayal and rage. We know the end of the story?but how did it really begin?

Praise for Fallen:

'Maine is enormously talented at extrapolating rich characters from a few brief verses in the Scriptures...What's...remarkable about Maine's work is his ability to soar above theological camps on gossamer wings of irony.'

Australian Financial Review

'Readers of David Maine's previous excursion into the margins of the Bible, The Flood, will have been looking forward to this book. They won't be disappointed… Maine listens to the echoing silences between the lines of Scripture. He rubs salt into his characters. There is nothing sweet about them.'

Sydney Morning Herald

'This book's power to rivet the reader approaches the miraculous.'

New York Times

'A witty and profound book, from its opening page to its wry ending.'

The Good Book Guide