Patrick : Son of Ireland

<p>From Arthurian legend to ancient Byzantium, from richly imagined worlds to breathtakingly re-created historical epochs, the novels of Stephen R. Lawhead weave a splendid tapestry of mysticism, heroism, adventure, revelation, and faith. Now the acclaimed author brings to magnificent life one of the most revered and remarkable figures of Celtic legend.</p><p>He enters the world as Succat Morgannwg, born of a noble Welsh family in the golden age of Britain. But at age sixteen he is violently torn from his family and home by Irish raiders and sold as a slave to a brutal king. So begin seven years of toil, abuse, and servitude -- and an education that will ultimately turn his path toward the extraordinary.</p><p>Rescued by the king's druids from almost certain death, young Succat soon learns the arts of healing and song, and the mystical ways of a secretive order whose teachings tantalize and tempt, hinting at a wisdom and faith deeper than he can imagine.</p><p>Yet he will not rest until he sheds the yoke of slavery and returns to his homeland across the sea. When the miracle of opportunity appears, he leaps -- pursuing his dream of freedom through horrific war and shattering tragedy, through great love and greater loss -- from a decimated Wales to the bloody battlefields of Gaul to the fading majesty of Rome. In the twilight of a once supreme empire, he is transformed yet again by a divine hand and a passionate vision of "Truth against the world." And from a friend and mentor, he receives the name that will become legend: <i>Patricius.</i></p><p>A magnificent epic that sweeps across decades and continents, Stephen R. Lawhead's Patrick is an exhilarating adventure based on exhaustive research and newly emergent historical discovery -- a masterful and unforgettable portrait of a slave, soldier, lover, hero, and saint . . . a man whose life mirrored the cataclysmic world into which he was born, and whose memory will outlast the ages.</p>