In a city of sultans, seductresses and apes, Balian of Norwich is pursued through a maze of streets by the Father of Cats, Fatima the Deadly, Shikk the half-man and many others. The Arabian Nightmare pervades the darkness of medieval Cairo. It haunts the labyrinth of its streets. It is a dream without awakening, a flight without escape, a tale without end. The Arabian Nightmare was in the first Dedalus list in 1983 and has never been out of print since. It is one of the great works of literary fantasy of its period and has been translated into twenty languages and acclaimed universally for its brilliance and inventiveness. It is essential reading for any devotee of literary fiction. AUTHOR: Robert Irwin (born 1946) is a novelist, historian, critic and scholar. He is a fellow of The Royal Society of Literature. He is the author of eight novels: The Arabian Nightmare (1983), The Limits of Vision (1986), The Mysteries of Algiers (1988), Exquisite Corpse (1995), Prayer-Cushions of the Flesh (1997), Satan Wants Me (1999) and Wonders Will Never Cease (2016)and My Life is like a Fairy Tale (2019) All his novels have enjoyed substantial publicity and commercial success although he is best known for The Arabian Nightmare which has been translated into twenty languages and is considered by many critics to be one of the great literary fantasy novels of the twentieth century. In 2021 his ninth novel The Runes Have Been Cast will be published by Dedalus.