Mortals is the second novel by American author Norman Rush

Norman Rush

Norman Rush is an American novelist whose introspective novels and short stories are set in Botswana in the 1980s. He is the son of Roger and Leslie Rush...

, and was published in 2003. The close third-person narrative follows Ray Finch, an American anthropology

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

 CIA agent student in Botswana

Botswana

Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...

after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Ray suspects his beloved wife Iris of an affair with Davis Morel, a Harvard-educated "eclectic medicine" practitioner and anti-theist with a mission to rid Africa of religion, Christianity in particular.