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The stripping of a sick mind

The Angel Maker

Stefan Brijs

The village of Wolfheim is a quiet little place until the geneticist Victor Hoppe returns after an absence of nearly twenty years. The doctor brings with him his infant children – three identical boys all sharing the same disfigurement. He keeps them hidden away until Charlotte, the woman who is hired to care for them, begins to suspect that the triplets – and the good doctor – aren’t quite what they seem.

As the villagers become increasingly suspicious, the story of Hoppe’s past begins to unfold. During his university career, he succeeded in cloning mice and the ugly, weak triplets are the result of his attempt at cloning himself.

Compelling... succeeds in immersing the reader in a chilling tale
Glasgow Evening Times

In the dramatic ending he initiates a new experiment, while simultaneously compromising his own existence. In his autism and his rigid way of thinking, his oversimplification of the contrast between good and evil, Hoppe charges inexorably towards open identification with Christ on the cross.

‘The Angel Maker’ is a chilling story that explores the ethical limits of science and religion. This austere, impassive naturalist novel has a sophisticated and ingenious plot that repeatedly astonishes the reader.

Unerring and compassionate
De Telegraaf
I immediately fell in love with this 'different' book
SHERIF BAKR, publisher of Al Arabia Publishing (Egypt)

‘I first heard about the book ‘The Angel Maker’ at the Frankfurt International Book Fair in 2009. I immediately fell in love with it. I was exploring Flemish and Dutch literature. I thought it would be like other European literature, but I discovered there is something different about it.

Dutch-language books are very original and they tackle subjects that nobody tackled before. They mix psychology and science and real life in a way that is very unique and yet universal.

‘The Angel Maker’ can absolutely be read in Egypt. Although it comes from a different country with a different culture, you can easily relate to it. It fits our programme perfectly as we do ‘different’ books. I really believe that this title will be received as something completely new to what we are used to here in Egypt or in the Arab world.’