The Conversions - Harry Mathews

A remarkable and unusual novel by “one of the most remarkable prose stylist presently writing in English.” —The San Francisco Chronicle At a dinner party hosted by a wealthy New Yorker, a guest receives an ancient golden weapon as a prize. When the mysterious host of this party dies the next day, his fortune is left to whomever it was that received the prize at the party. The only requirement: the owner must answer three cryptic questions relating to the artifact''s mysterious history. In his search for answers, He quickly finds himself entangled in the centuries-long history of a secretive religious sect, embarking on an odyssey that begins at a dinner party, and ends on the ocean floor. Along this wild goose chase, we encounter a menagerie of eccentric personalities: an ancient revolutionary in a Parisian prison, a ludicrous pair of gibberish-speaking brothers, and customs officials who spend their time reading contraband materials. The Conversions is a wildly unpredictable novel, inviting readers along in the search for answers that may never have existed in the first place.