First published 1983
This collection gathers thirty-four tales where mortals encounter Satan and his minions across centuries of literature. Enoch Soames strikes his doomed bargain with the devil in Max Beerbohm's tale, while Tom Walker faces his creditor in Washington Irving's New England woods. The anthology spans from Dante's frozen Lucifer in the depths of hell to John Collier's modern demons attending bottle parties. Faust appears in multiple incarnations, from Marlowe's tragic scholar to Goethe's seeker of knowledge. Robert Louis Stevenson's innkeeper confronts his supernatural guest, Guy de Maupassant explores the legend of Mont St. Michel, and Gogol conjures devils on St. John's Eve. The collection includes Baudelaire's Satan worship, Milton's rebellious angels, and C.S. Lewis's correspondence from hell. Whether the devil appears as tempter, trickster, or terrible force of judgment, these stories probe the eternal struggle between good and evil that runs through human nature.
Genres: anthologies, 20th-century, horror, supernatural, dark-fantasy, demons
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, supernatural-elements
Setting: Hell, Mont St. Michel, New England, St. John's Eve
Period: Centuries
334 pages · Hardcover · Century Bookbindery
Content warnings: death, gore, graphic-violence