The author's life is as fascinating as his own stories. To this day the question seems not to have been satisfactorily answered as to who killed Kit Marlowe. A literary genius, many felt him to be superior to Shakespeare although his murder at age 29 leaves him decades short of the body of work Shakespeare produced over his lifetime, so it is nearly impossible to make a fair comparison.
There are intimations of many rivalries, in his artistic endeavors as well as his romantic ones, charges over his religious affilliations and activities, as well as his moral character. Christopher Marlowe's stories are dark and bloody, without the happy endings with which Shakespeare often saw fit to finish his tales. Perhaps it was inevitable that his own life would be short and come to violent end, maybe due to a premonition or simply a reflection of more violent times. In reading Tamburlaine the Great, I found it interesting that repercussians of these past violent times can be found to the present day with Chechnyans still battling, centuries after Tamerlane, a descendent of Ghengis Khan, built a powerful empire through terror in this part of the world.
Marlowe's tales are not a fast read, but they are very well crafted and worth the time, if a little depressing and violent for some tastes. ( )

A nice little book from more than a hundred years ago. ( )

Tamburlaine the Great part the first -- ... part the second -- The tragical history of Doctor Faustus -- The Jew of Malta -- Edward the Second ( )