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67th out of 89 books
—
98 voters
God's Demon
Lucifer's War, which damned legions of angels to Hell, is an ancient and bitter memory shrouded in the smoke and ash of the Inferno. The Fallen, those banished demons who escaped the full wrath of Heaven, have established a limitless and oppressive kingdom within the fiery confines of Hell. Lucifer has not been seen since the Fall and the mantle of rulership has been pas
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
October 16th 2007
by Tor Books
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For good and ill, this book is all about the sickly delicious and lusciously demented imageryoozingforth from the creative centers of Wayne Barlowe's amazingly artistic brain.
Taking inspiration from Milton'sParadise Lost, Barlowe presents an original retelling of the aftermath of the failedangelic coup d' etat and the initial construction of Hell as a fully realized fantasy setting, complete withenormous, towering cities built using "the damned" asliving sentient building materials.
Isn't that...more
Taking inspiration from Milton'sParadise Lost, Barlowe presents an original retelling of the aftermath of the failedangelic coup d' etat and the initial construction of Hell as a fully realized fantasy setting, complete withenormous, towering cities built using "the damned" as
Isn't that...more
”Their appearance was as grotesque as their croaking chorus; they were as varied and individual as the capricious laws of the demons could create. Somewhere in Hell, a veritable army of lesser demons had their way with the endless flood of souls as they entered the realm. Legless, headless, corkscrewed, folded, torn, and pierced, each soul wore but the thinnest mask of mankind.”
Painting by artist and author Wayne Barlowe
Lucifer has disappeared from Hell passing his administrative duties to Beel...more
Painting by artist and author Wayne Barlowe
Lucifer has disappeared from Hell passing his administrative duties to Beel...more
32 likes · like · see review
If I were a believer in mankind's rendition of hell (and especially of one so artfully sketched by Mr. Barlowe), I'd spend the rest of my days on earth in fear and on a constant campaign to become a saint. Fortunately, the truth of spirituality and the cosmos in general is likely beyond my comprehension, while all the imaginings and myths of heaven and hell were formed to accommodate human understanding, and fears. This line of musing, some might call it a rationalization, served as a protective...more
10 likes · like · see review
Very historical, theological and thought provoking. Not what I expected when my boyfriend wanted me to read it. It was actually a very good book.
I RARELY comment on books that i've read in these boxes, but I felt that this one warranted commenting. To be honest, the sheer originality of this book is amazing. Barlowe's depiction of hell's landscape, how hell works, and the fact that he's turned souls (human beings which have landed in hell) and demons into heroes and cataloged one demon major's struggle to return to his former place in heaven is a fantastic read. The ideas of cities and a class system in hell is very interesting throughou...more
4 likes · like · see review
Not for the faint of heart. There were a couple of times when my stomach started to turn a little bit, however, I was riveted. Even though the protagonists and antagonists are both primarily demons Barlowe doesn't give us a notion of "good" demons. They are all wicked, selfish, ambitious and willing to deal out the punishment deserved of the souls in their charge. If not for outside influence (a non-demon) the story would never have a backbone. In other words the "good" demons would actually hav...more
Wayne Barlowe is one of my favorite Artists. He has done all sorts of stuff in his career, from painting his own version of the inferno, to his own toy line in the 1980s, to character and concept design for movies like Harry Potter. This is (as far as I know) his one and only novel.
The scene; Hell. Lucifer has gone missing, and the demons of Hell are son to be at war with each other for dominance. Sargantanas is the main character, a demon simply because he made the wrong choice during the war i...more
The scene; Hell. Lucifer has gone missing, and the demons of Hell are son to be at war with each other for dominance. Sargantanas is the main character, a demon simply because he made the wrong choice during the war i...more
I was torn between giving this book 4 or 5 stars as it was powerful enough to move me to tears. I went with 5 stars when I looked at my other 5 star books. All were books that I was, and still am, passionate and excited about.
Perhaps others who read this book will not find it moving or interesting, perhaps it will never be regarded as "classic literature," but I had the same feeling while reading this book as I did while reading The Robe; I felt a sense of truth, of power, of wonder. And I was a...more
Perhaps others who read this book will not find it moving or interesting, perhaps it will never be regarded as "classic literature," but I had the same feeling while reading this book as I did while reading The Robe; I felt a sense of truth, of power, of wonder. And I was a...more
This book does something fascinating. In recent years, writing stories about morally-questionable to outright dreadful angels has progressed to the point of being fashionable (so edgy!) right past to the point of being near-cliche. Barlowe, however, subverts this burgeoning trope by reversing it entirely. His topic isn't the possibility for corruption of angels; it's the possibility of redemption for demons. His protagonist character is one of the great demon lords of Hell - and after untold mil...more
Without getting into any religious banter or proselytizing, I would have to say this was a very good book. Definately not a type of book that I would normally pick up. Something about the cover drew me in and after the first couple of pages I was hooked. The viewpoint is interesting to say the least. It looks at the Fall of the angels from the losers perspective. It isn't going to convert you and it isn't like reading any kind of religious text. If you can get around the fact that maybe Lucifer...more
I was very lucky to find this in one of my boring shelf scanning sessions at my local library. Cover artwork looked interesting so I picked it up and checked it out. And fortunately I was treated to a very unique perspective of Hell. Barlowe's description of its wastelands and the Fallen hordes who now inhabit them was an amazing break from the typical fire and damnation that has become synonymous with stories that deal with the down below. Instead it is a story about one of the Fallen's road to...more
I loved the world presented in God's Demon. I enjoyed the characters as well, but I didn't really enjoy the plot. It's basically setting up a war, then fighting a war. Every single place is described in exhausting detail, and eventually I just didn't want to read about what a particular room or road looked like. I wasn't interested in the hundreds of pages devoted to the war, and decided this book just isn't for me. If more character centered and less detail and war centered I would have really...more
I found it moving and slightly creepy. It gives a new outlook on the damnation called hell. The book is about a demons quest and fight for redemption from hell. you get introduced to characters that you can love immediately or hate. The pictures conjoured in the mind are kind of scary and it is hard to understand at the beginnin, but once you know who the characters are it tells a good story. I would recommend this book for those who want to go out and try a different genre. it makes spiritual r...more
Apr 30, 2013
Jesse Snyder
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone that likes epic war, dark fantasy, or religious fiction.
This book is amazing and full of the drama that one would expect to find in Hell, but also some rather surprising events and emotions. It follows the once-seraphim Sargatanas, as well as some of his servants, and Beelzebub, and a small number of his servants. Sargatanas is unhappy with the way that Hell is run, and sees that even though they were cast out of Heaven, that doesn't mean that the angels should be treat each other as the monsters that they acted like to be thrown from Heaven in the f...more
There is a point in the early part of John Milton's "Paradise Lost" when Lucifer is wandering the Earth, thinking of all he'll do with it, and God opens a stairway back to heaven for him, saying if he will return home, all will be forgiven. Lucifer rejects the offer saying "'Tis better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven." (In that moment he ceases to be Lucifer, Bearer of Light, and fully becomes Satan, the Father of Lies, according to Milton.)
Fantasy artist Wayne Barlowe uses this as his ba...more
Fantasy artist Wayne Barlowe uses this as his ba...more
Sargatanas is my boy, and this is one of the best books I've ever read.
I’ve delved into hell many times on my reading journeys and this particular book has made the journey as pleasurable as any considering the environment. A great and action packed story of one Greater Demons struggle with his consciousness and the world he finds himself in after having fallen from Heaven. This is the first attempt at writing by someone who was strictly an artist up until now, and I at least will say he does both equally well. This book is definitely worth the time and money if yo...more
This was recommended (and loaned to me) by a friend; when I read the back cover, I thought I'd wind up reading a chapter and then stopping. Si-fi/fantasy isn't my cup of tea.
I wound up reading it in just a few days. It's been a while since I read a nearly 500 page novel that quickly, but this one grabbed me. I won't give anything away, except to say that the story takes place in Hell. Even if if this genre isn't something you normally read, I'd still say to give this a try. Barlowe's a very goo...more
I wound up reading it in just a few days. It's been a while since I read a nearly 500 page novel that quickly, but this one grabbed me. I won't give anything away, except to say that the story takes place in Hell. Even if if this genre isn't something you normally read, I'd still say to give this a try. Barlowe's a very goo...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This was awesome. I actually finished it more than a week ago but I’m just getting around to reviewing it. I’ve enjoyed Barlowe’s Inferno books even thought I don’t think the art itself is amazing I love the concepts – how all the structures in Hell are huge, how the souls carry their essence in black spheres that protrude and move about their bodies. I love the glyphs above the demons heads. All that is brought to life with many more ideas that make Hell a very memorable setting.
The plot was or...more
The plot was or...more
Lucifer's war, war in heaven, has been over and done with for tens of thousands of years. The Fallen, demons who had once been angels before being cast out of Heaven for their rebellion against the Will of God, have established their own vast kingdom in the ash-shrouded, mephitic desolation that is Hell. and Lucifer himself, having achieved what he sought to do, has vanished, leaving the tyrant-God Beelzebub the Lord of Hell.
The Demons Major, who were once, before their fall from grace, warrior-...more
The Demons Major, who were once, before their fall from grace, warrior-...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This is the debut novel by famed artist Wayne Barlowe. I have read rumblings around the internet that he is to have a sequel of this book soon, though it appears that it won't be directly. Just another story following the events of this first book. I hope this is true, because I really enjoyed this one.
Here is the description on Amazon's web site about the book:
Here is the description on Amazon's web site about the book:
Lucifer's War, which damned legions of angels to Hell, is an ancient and bitter memory shrouded in the smoke and ash of the Inferno. Th...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Given to me by a friend who got it from the publisher. Interesting concept by way too explicit for a wimp reader (which I am. I can hardly even look at the cover of Silence of the Lambs because I know what is inside. But then again, I'm like that with Danielle Steele, too ;-p) But I liked the concept of Sargatanas deciding to get the hell out of hell. This book was selected as a Book Sense Notable Book for December 2007.
From Publishers Weekly
Best known for extraordinarily imaginative fantasy art...more
From Publishers Weekly
Best known for extraordinarily imaginative fantasy art...more
Although the writing is only ok, it is not bad and the quality of the story itself more than makes up for it. I think the grusomness of hell is intriguing to many of us and this book does not hold back. I half suspected when I started that the author would make Hell seem like a fairly OK place but he does not hold back from describing the gore to be found there or the excruciating fates of the sould inhabiting it. The demons (hero included) are at once likable and not. It is sometimes easy to fo...more
My GODS! This book was well beyond awesome. I've read it four times in the past year and I'm still working on reading it another two times before the end of this year. This book has so much detail that its easy to envision the scene, it has characters that you both love and hate, you fully understand the reasoning of each character and you also get the full details of not just normal combat but aerial combat.
Its magnificent. I definitely recommend this book to all my friends.
Its magnificent. I definitely recommend this book to all my friends.
It is obvious from the get go that Barlowe is primarily an artist. He certainly writes like one, with lots of descriptions painting precise pictures, getting hung up on little visual detains. It's not a bad story, but it is a chore to read. The grotesque detail of Barlowe's hell certain comes across, but his book feels too long for his story, and Hannibal Barca's addition to the cast feels to me as an at random choice.
Oct 20, 2012
Klytia
marked it as unfinished
Abbandonato a poco più di cento pagine dalla fine.
Benchè l'ambientazione, chiaramente ispirata al Paradiso Perduto di Milton, fosse affascinante, lo stile narrativo è decisamente mediocre.
I protagonisti, gli angeli caduti, sono malamente abbozzati mentre le descrizioni delle città e delle battaglie, inutilmente ripetitive, ammazzano l'immaginazione e la voglia di leggere come si conclude la vicenda.
Benchè l'ambientazione, chiaramente ispirata al Paradiso Perduto di Milton, fosse affascinante, lo stile narrativo è decisamente mediocre.
I protagonisti, gli angeli caduti, sono malamente abbozzati mentre le descrizioni delle città e delle battaglie, inutilmente ripetitive, ammazzano l'immaginazione e la voglia di leggere come si conclude la vicenda.
This is the story of a fallen angel who decides he wants to go back to Heaven a few thousand years after the Fall. The novel does not touch on matters of faith and spirituality all that much aside from assuming and employing some Judeo-Christian mythology. The novel is reminiscent of Lord of the Rings with its epic battle scenes, war language, and all-around-spectacle. Wayne Barlowe is an illustrator by profession, not a writer and it shows. I could see this succeeding as a graphic novel, but in...more
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| Creative Reviews: God's Demon | 2 | 18 | Feb 17, 2012 07:50pm |
Oct 24, 2011 11:30am
For world-building and beautiful (th...more
Oct 25, 2011 07:51am