Confessing a Murder

by Nicholas Drayson

A murder, a vanished tropical island, a thwarted love affair...clues to the origin of Charles Darwin's famous theory. A nameless narrator, abandoned on an island soon to be obliterated by volcanic activity, tells the story of his life and exile from England. The tale is as extraordinary for its observations of a surreal natural history as for the dark twistings of human nature it reveals. His particular interest is beetles―a passion he shares, most literally, with the idolized friend of his school years, Charles Darwin―and his reckless pursuit of the golden scarab has led him to a place that mirrors the Galapagos in the utter singularity of its fauna and flora. Blood-sucking mistletoe and amphibian swallows are but two of the fantastic species he records. Is this the diary of a madman? Or is it the story of why Darwin published the book that destroyed his belief in God? Fearlessly original in conception, this tale is as extraordinary for its observations of a surreal natural history as for the dark twistings of human nature it reveals.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction

Paperback

First published May 1, 2002

About the author

Nicholas Drayson has written extensively about wildlife and natural history and is the author of the novels Confessing a Murder, which was hailed by Booklist for its "view of Darwin never before seen", Love and the Platypus and A Guide to the Beasts of East Africa. An Englishman by birth, Drayson has worked as a journalist in the UK, Kenya and Australia, writing for publications such as the Daily Telegraph and Australian Geographic. He has lived in Australia since 1982, where he received a Ph.D. from the University of New South Wales.