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The Devil's Apprentice: The Great Devil War I
320 pages, Hardcover
Published September 10, 2018
About the author
Kenneth B. Andersen
20 books130 followersI was born in Denmark on a dark and stormy night in November 1976. I began writing when I was a teenager. My first book was a really awful horror novel titled Nidhug's Slaves. It didn't get published. Luckily.
During the next 7 years, I wrote nearly 20 novels--all of which were rejected--while working as a school teacher.
In 2000 I published my debut fantasy book, The Battle of Caïssa, and that's when things really took off. Since then I've published more than forty books for children and young adults in genres ranging from fantasy to horror and science fiction.
My books have been translated into more than 15 languages and my series about the superhero Antboy has been adapted for film, which is available on Netflix. An animated tv series is currently in development.
A musical of The Devil's Apprentice opened in the fall 2018 and the movie rights for the series have been optioned.
I live in Copenhagen with my wife, two boys, a dog named Milo and spiders in the basement.
During the next 7 years, I wrote nearly 20 novels--all of which were rejected--while working as a school teacher.
In 2000 I published my debut fantasy book, The Battle of Caïssa, and that's when things really took off. Since then I've published more than forty books for children and young adults in genres ranging from fantasy to horror and science fiction.
My books have been translated into more than 15 languages and my series about the superhero Antboy has been adapted for film, which is available on Netflix. An animated tv series is currently in development.
A musical of The Devil's Apprentice opened in the fall 2018 and the movie rights for the series have been optioned.
I live in Copenhagen with my wife, two boys, a dog named Milo and spiders in the basement.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 9, 2026
Thank you @kenneth_b_andersen for sending me an ARC of The Devil's Apprentice to review!
Phillip is a boy who suffers heavy bullying at school. After being distracted by a talking black cat, his bully chases him, making Phillip get run over by a truck.
After this he finds himself in Hell, even though he hasn't done anything wrong. He finds out that Lucifer had intended to get Sam, his bully, to become his apprentice, but instead Phillip was the one to die. Worse than that, Phillip is an "angel boy", aka someone who's naturally good and super hard to corrupt.
However, as he begins making enemies, solving a mystery and falling in love with a demon-lady, Phillip's morals are tested and his fate seems uncertain as to who he'll be: Will he remain a good person or become the monster Lucifer wants him to be?
Philip's personal journey is so interesting to read: he really does start out as a goody-two-shoes, but as he begins to believe Satina (his crush) is just playing a trick on him and is secretly dating his enemy, he begins descending into evil. That descent is very well-written, with him describing how good revenge makes him feel and how he always tries to justify his evil-doings, like he can't yet accept who he's becoming.
When he discovers the truth about how he was tricked, he experiences a reversal of this, he starts going back to the good person he was.
The villain of the story was very unpredictable. In my opinion, the initial suspect seemed to always be conveniently where he had to be, so when it turned out to not be him, I was surprised. The final confrontation was fun.
I also loved how the Devil ended up fond of Phillip. Also, Lucifax and the other Hell employees really enjoyed Phillip's presence and his kindness was sweet.
It's a very fun book to read, full of fantasy, emotional and the line between good-and-evil!
TW: bullying; mentions of torture, car accident.
Phillip is a boy who suffers heavy bullying at school. After being distracted by a talking black cat, his bully chases him, making Phillip get run over by a truck.
After this he finds himself in Hell, even though he hasn't done anything wrong. He finds out that Lucifer had intended to get Sam, his bully, to become his apprentice, but instead Phillip was the one to die. Worse than that, Phillip is an "angel boy", aka someone who's naturally good and super hard to corrupt.
However, as he begins making enemies, solving a mystery and falling in love with a demon-lady, Phillip's morals are tested and his fate seems uncertain as to who he'll be: Will he remain a good person or become the monster Lucifer wants him to be?
Philip's personal journey is so interesting to read: he really does start out as a goody-two-shoes, but as he begins to believe Satina (his crush) is just playing a trick on him and is secretly dating his enemy, he begins descending into evil. That descent is very well-written, with him describing how good revenge makes him feel and how he always tries to justify his evil-doings, like he can't yet accept who he's becoming.
When he discovers the truth about how he was tricked, he experiences a reversal of this, he starts going back to the good person he was.
The villain of the story was very unpredictable. In my opinion, the initial suspect seemed to always be conveniently where he had to be, so when it turned out to not be him, I was surprised. The final confrontation was fun.
I also loved how the Devil ended up fond of Phillip. Also, Lucifax and the other Hell employees really enjoyed Phillip's presence and his kindness was sweet.
It's a very fun book to read, full of fantasy, emotional and the line between good-and-evil!
TW: bullying; mentions of torture, car accident.
August 3, 2026
The Devil's Apprentice: The Great Devil War I, my first read from author Kenneth B. Andersen/Kenneth Bøgh Andersen, an author I'd not heard of before receiving a complimentary Kindle copy back in April of 2019 where I promptly lost track of it. A dark fantasy 320-page read that I finished in a single sitting. Now I've read it & am voluntarily leaving a review." The gifting of this book did not affect my opinion of it. I'll be reading more from this author; in fact, The Die of Death: The Great Devil War II and the rest of the series is already on my TBR list. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews