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The Earth Will Shake

The Earth Will Shake

The History of the Early Illuminati (The Historical Illuminatus Chronicles)
Historical FictionPhilosophy
Pages
369
Published
1982
Language
English

Synopsis

Follow Sigismundo Celine, an ancestor of Hagbard Celine from the Illuminatus! Trilogy, as he navigates 18th-century Europe and America. Sigismundo, an adolescent in Naples, is introduced to the teachings of the Freemasons by his uncle. Banished from Naples after a duel, he finds himself imprisoned in the Bastille and later by a mysterious group, constantly striving to avoid becoming a pawn of history.

Prose complexity
7/10

Vibe

AdventurousThought-ProvokingIntellectual
Coming of AgeFish Out of Water

Genres

Historical Fiction Philosophy History Science Fiction

About the author

R
Robert Anton Wilson

Robert Anton Wilson (born Robert Edward Wilson; January 18, 1932 – January 11, 2007) was an American author, novelist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, and self-described agnostic mystic. Recognized by Discordianism as an Episkopos, Pope, and saint, Wilson helped publicize the group through his writings and interviews. Wilson described his work as an "attempt to break down conditioned associations, to look at the world in a new way, with many models recognized as models or maps,...

Characters

Sigismundo CelineProtagonist
Hagbard CelineCameo
All characters in The Earth Will Shake

Frequently asked questions

  • Does The Earth Will Shake connect to Robert Anton Wilson's other works?

    This novel is the first in the Historical Illuminati Chronicles, which explores the historical roots of the secret societies and conspiracies featured in his earlier and more famous Illuminatus! Trilogy. It introduces an ancestor of a key character from that trilogy, providing a historical backdrop to the themes Wilson frequently explores.

  • Is The Earth Will Shake a standalone story?

    While it is the first book in a series, The Earth Will Shake offers a complete narrative arc for its protagonist, Sigismundo Celine, within its own pages. Readers can enjoy it as a self-contained story, though the subsequent books continue to develop the overarching historical conspiracy.