The Judas Inheritance — James Collins

In 2013 a motion picture adaptation of The Judas Inheritance, called The Judas Curse, was filmed in Greece. It is important to stress that film adaptations, of necessity, are often markedly different from the books on which they are based. This is the novel version of the original story before it was adapted for film. An ancient curse? Desperation in the economic crisis? What is causing the suicides of so many adults and children on this small Greek island? When Chris Trelawney arrives on the island to take away his late father's belongings, he finds that he has been left little more than a mystery. Was his father mad at the time of his death, or did he actually believe that he had awakened a powerful evil? An ancient evil that now stalks the islanders, growing stronger by the day. A curse that will cause the death of everyone around Chris unless he allows himself to believe that such things exist. But when he discovers the truth, Chris realises that death is the easy option. The Judas Inheritance was inspired by the ruins of a village on the Greek is¬land of Symi in the Dodecanese. The story is complete fiction, but I was cap¬tivated by the mysterious dates, numbers, and names that appear on many of these hauntingly strange buildings that seem to conjure up a curiosity about the lives of the people who once might have lived there. While the story is set on an imaginary island, visitors to Symi will recognise a number of features which I have borrowed.