The Prisoner' recounts the Life of the Apostle Paul, in a fresh and very different way. Paul's life story is shared through various conversations he has with visitors as they come to see him in his prison in Rome.This historical fiction is set late in Paul's life - mostly during his "first" Roman imprisonment. Paul was a Roman citizen and so he did have some rights. He could keep a "slave" (Luke, his friend) and he had considerable freedom to see visitors. The life of Paul is shared with the reader, in a patchwork mosaic. The reader becomes a bit of an "eavesdropper" on the very private and detailed conversations Paul has with dear friends. Paul's deepest feelings and his reflections on moral and theological themes is shared through this framework.As different visitors come to him, they reminisce about their times together. Through this story the reader not only comes to know Paul better, but also meets other New Testament characters as well (Luke, Mark, Simon-Peter, Timothy, Prisca, and numerous others).As memories are shared, we also hear the tragic stories of the murders of Barnabas (the early disciple who helped Paul into ministry) and James (the brother of Jesus).The life of Paul is historical fiction and so there is an element of poetic licence that the writer has used to create the story. For the readers who are inclined to want to know just what is actual history and what is speculation, the author provides a useful Appendix at the end of the book. It gives the historical evidence for some parts of the story, and admits to when certain things were just 'made up' to flesh out the narrative. He does argue, however, that even the 'made up' parts are possible.
