First published 1992
From medieval manuscripts to modern cartoons, the Devil has always been humanity's most compelling villain. In this razor-sharp anthology, Lucifer himself becomes narrator, dissecting his own mythological career with sardonic wit. Each selected text—scripture, drama, poetry, folklore—becomes a window into our complex relationship with evil, revealing how this archetypal figure both terrifies and fascinates. Spufford assembles a provocative collection that traces the Devil's transformations: sometimes a cosmic rebel, sometimes a bureaucratic tempter, always a mirror reflecting humanity's darkest impulses. Through carefully curated texts spanning centuries, the book reveals how our conception of evil has evolved—and what that says about us. More than a scholarly compilation, this is an intimate conversation with civilization's most enduring antihero.
Genres: literary-fiction, anthologies, horror, folklore, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: dark, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
Period: Medieval, Modern
400 pages · Paperback · Random House UK