Servant of the Bones
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| Author | Anne Rice |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Historical, Horror novel |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Released | 1996 |
| Media Type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 387 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-679-43301-5 |
Servant of the Bones is a 1996 historical horror novel by Anne Rice.
Contents |
[edit] Plot introduction
It is an autobiographical account of the creation and subsequent existence of a genii, Azriel. It is a story told as a fireside chat and it is rich with historical accounts of Azriel's life as a displaced Jew/rich merchant's son in Babylon at the time of its conquest by Cyrus the Persian. There are also glimpses of life in ancient Miletus, in Strasbourg during a pogram, and New York City of the 1990s.
[edit] Explanation of the novel's title
Throughout the novel, Azriel is struggling to understand whether he is a ghost, a demon, or an angel. He is trying to understand why his god has denied him the Stairway to Heaven by allowing him to be made into an immortal spirit who is bound to the gold-encased bones of his mortal body. As a genii, he must obey the Master of those bones (whomever has them at the moment) and become the Master's Servant of good or evil. Thus the title, Servant of the Bones.
[edit] Plot summary
Azriel is telling the story of his transformation into and subsequent existence as an immortal genii who is forced to obey the Master who calls him. Over centuries, Azriel becomes less obedient to the Masters and a warning is placed on the casket of his bones that he is not to be summoned lest his evil be loosed upon the undeserving world.
After many centuries of rest, Azriel finds himself awake and in New York City, a dazed witness to the murder of a young woman, Esther Belkin. He becomes inexplicably obsessed with the desire to avenge her death and to find out who called him into the physical world in time to see Esther die but not in time to save her. This quest leads him to the girl's stepfather, Gregory Belkin, who would pay any price to fulfill his messianic dream via his immense worldwide religious organization, the Temple of the Mind of God.
As his quest approaches its climax, he risks his supernatural powers to forestall an attempt to destroy the world thus redeeming what was denied him for so long: his own eternal human soul.
[edit] Characters in "Servant of the Bones"
Azriel - formerly a mortal young man of Babylon in 539 B.C., now a spirit bound to obey whomever possesses his gold-encased mortal bones.
Jonathan Ben Isaac - the history professor whom Azriel seeks to hear and write his tale.
[edit] In Babylon
Aseneth
Cyrus
Marduk
Nabonidus
[edit] In Miletus
Zurvan
[edit] In France
Samuel
[edit] In New York City
Avram the Rebbe - Gregory's estranged Grandfather; a Jewish holy man and keeper of the Bones (although he never called upon Azriel).
Esther Belkin
Gregory Belkin
Rachel Belkin - Gregory's wife; dying of a terminal illness, she claims Gregory is poisoning her and begs Azriel to fly with her to Miami so she may die in her own home.
Billy Joel Eval - Eldest of the three Eval brothers who are the paid assassins of Esther.
Nathan - Gregory's estranged identical twin is a diamond merchant in New York City; he met Esther by chance and told her of his familial connection to her step-father, Gregory.
[edit] Major themes
Destiny
Life After Death
Life as a Jew; persecution and displacement of the Jewish.
[edit] Allusions to other works
The character Jonathan Ben Isaac and his visit by a spirit call to mind the similar situation and name in the poem Abu Ben Adhem by Victorian poet, James Henry Lee Hunt.
[edit] Allusions/references to actual history
As a work of historical fiction, this novel has several characters who were real or from ancient mythologies: Alexander the Great, Cyrus the Persian, Marduk, Nabonidus, Pharoh.
[edit] Release details
1996, USA, Alfred A. Knopf, ISBN 0-679-43301-5, ? ? 1996, hardcover (First edition)
