Edgar Stark is a murderer. Convinced that his wife was betraying him,and had been since the beginning of their marriage, he killed her in a brutal act of violence. The courts found him insane and he was confined in one of England's most secure mental institutions. Edgar Stark is a fictious character at the center of Patrick McGrath's new novel "Asylum." Kirkus Reviews calls McGrath a worthy descendant of Edgar Allan Poe, a contemporary master of highbrow Gothic fiction. His previous novels have all been optioned for films. "Gentlemen Don't Eat Poets" based on his book "The Grotesque" opens this month. In "Asylum" McGrath explores the fine line between love and obsession. While Edgar Stark could well be portrayed as a monster, McGrath only lightly touches on his brutal crime...instead introducing the reader to a man of culture and charm.