'This book uncovers what was lost when Christianity won ... a delightful book about destruction and despair. Nixey combines the authority of a serious academic with the expressive style of a good journalist.' -- The Times 'With passion, wit and thunderous eloquence, Nixey throws everything she has against the bishops, monks and Christian emperors of late antiquity ... The Darkening Age rattles along at a tremendous pace, and Nixey brilliantly evokes all that was lost with the waning of the classical world.' -- The Sunday Times 'Clever, compelling ... Readers raised in the milky Anglican tradition will be surprised to learn of the savagery of the early saints and their sledgehammer-swinging followers ... exceptionally well written.' -- The Spectator