The Devil’s Paintbrush

Witness the scene. In a Parisian restaurant Aleister Crowley, the notorious occultist, chances on Major-General Sir Hector McDonald: once one of the greatest heroes of the British Empire, now facing ruin in a shocking scandal – and vulnerable to Crowley’s curious offer of help. Follow this unlikely pair on an extraordinary night of revelation and transgression. Be transported to the battlefields of Sudan, the backstreets of Edinburgh and the sultry tropics of Ceylon. And discover Sir Hector’s tragic secret…In this enthralling tale of imperialism, sexuality and the nature of belief, Jake Arnott probes beneath the surface of Victorian conformity and captures a world trembling on the brink of a brutal new era.