The Inquest

In a magnificently conceived and executed historical novel, first-time writer Stephen Dando-Collins invents a historical conceit worthy of the work of Dan Brown and worthy of comparison with the huge, international bestseller The Da Vinci Code.During the reign of the Emperor Vespasian and shortly after Roman armies have crushed the Jewish revolt in Judea and destroyed the temple, a young Roman Questor and investigating magistrate, Julius Varro, is commissioned to investigate the story that a Jew rose from the dead after being crucified in Jerusalem some forty years before. Implicit in his commission is the mandate that he must return with proof of the conclusion that such an event could not have happened.The fast-growing cult of the Nazarene is becoming a threat to the political stability in the region—and to the power of Rome as well—and convincing disproof of the story. Many of the witnesses to the tale are long dead, the trail of evidence is chancy at best. Many of the living feel compelled to lie to protect their own lives. Questor Varro pursues his mission with zeal and conviction, determined to produce a report that will demolish the claims put forward by those he regards as religious fanatics and crackpots. Along the way, his investigation stirs religious passions, immerses him in unexpected intrigue and foments violence. He also finds himself attracted to a beautiful Jewish slave girl.Varro completes his report demolishing the myth that seems to be fueling the new Christian movement and is set to return to Rome when an extraordinary, in fact miraculous, event occurs that changes everything...including Varro's own beliefs.