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Title: DEVILS DAY by James Blish ISBN: 0-671-69860-5 Publisher: Baen Pub. Date: 01 January, 1990 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $3.95

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Average Customer Rating: 4.75 (4 reviews)

Rating: 5
Summary: Memorable and thought-provoking
Comment: I read this book when it first came out, but forgot the title and the name of the author. It's been bugging me for years, because I often think of the story and characters. Today, I finally hit on the right search keywords, so now I'm going to get a used copy to replace the one that I haven't seen in years.

I was particularly struck by the attention to detail concerning the difficulties of being a sorcerer. Blish started from the premise that the rituals in old grimoires were would actually work, but only if followed accurately. The sorcerer must forge his own knife, for example... And the whole field doesn't lend itself to experimentation, so you can never be sure which unpleasant-to-obtain ingredients are really necessary.

By setting the groundwork so effectively in the first part of the book, he really grabbed my attention for the subsequent rather rather wild story of the aftermath of unleashing a group of demons to do whatever they wish for one night.

The ending is not really what you'd expect, either. I don't want to ruin the plot for anyone, so I won't go into detail, but I definitely would not recommend this book for someone with rigid theological views. Blish's conclusions are a bit reminiscent of Heinlein.

Rating: 5
Summary: Faust ain't got nothing on this modern retelling
Comment: The late James Blish was interested in what made humans "go," and he used his position as a writer of paperback science-fiction to examine the underpinnings of human desire. In this one, a man is so greedy for illicit profits that he contracts with a sorcerer to call up EVERY demon he's signed a blood contract with, more than seventy in all, to stir up conflict and violence. Well-researched where it comes to the diabloic material and believable where the human interactions are concerned. Originally written as two novels, which must have been very short indeed -- my combined volume is very slim and wouldn't do to level a wobbly table. Enjoyable both by those with an established interest in the occult and those who are simply interested in a good read.

Rating: 5
Summary: Mephistopheles would be proud!
Comment: I'll give it one giant upside down 5 Pointed Star