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God's Demon by Wayne Barlowe
Book Summary InformationAuthor: Wayne Barlowe Edition: Hardcover Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published) Published: 2007-10-16 ISBN: 0765309858 Number of pages: 352 Publisher: Tor Books
Book Reviews of God's DemonBook Review: Good story, weak delivery Summary: 3 StarsI, too, really tried to love this book, for the simple fact it sprang from the imagination of Wayne Barlowe, but alas, this work failed me. All of his other works reside in my collection, and when I discovered his attempt to add further dimension to the world introduced in Barlowe's Inferno, I knew I must possess this one as well. The work, however, began to displease me when I realized he failed to change his passive "narrator" voice used so often in the descriptions to his art (Inferno, Expedition or the Fantasy / Extraterrestrial guides). Too much of that "he was" or "they were" or "she had been" murdered any life within the story. Barlowe failed to fulfill an inherent promise of plunging the reader into the center of the action, and found myself sidelined into the role of post-facto observer as in his other works (Imagine a Infernal Geographic, if you will). Others extol the visuals of the work, but I wonder how the prose impacts someone who never perused Barlowe's Inferno or the companion folio.
While this screams "first draft," the work still merits a read, and is a important companion to the other works of Barlowe, so for the collection's completion sake, this cannot be left behind.
I give it 3 stars - the read proved interesting, and it possesses all the potential of an uncut ruby. As an artist, Wayne Barlowe reigns supreme. As a novel writer, his work lacks the polish of a professional storyteller, though the prose within his other works proves his skill with the written word. More practice with demands of a NOVEL and Barlowe may be a serious contender.
Summary of God's DemonLucifer?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 passed to the horrific Prince Beelzebub, the Lord of the Flies. The Demons Major, Heaven's former warriors, have become the ruling class. They are the equivalent to landed lords, each owing allegiance to the de facto ruler of Hell. They reign over their fiefdoms, tormenting the damned souls and adding to their wealth.
One Demon Major, however, who has not forgotten his former life in Heaven. The powerful Lord Sargatanas is restless. For millennia Sargatanas has ruled dutifully but unenthusiastically, building his city, Adamantinarx, into the model of an Infernal metropolis. But he has never forgotten what he lost in the Fall?proximity to God. He is sickened by what he has become. Now, with a small event?a confrontation with one of the damned souls?he makes a decision that will reverberate through every being in Hell. Sargatanas decides to attempt the impossible, to rebel, to endeavor to go Home and bring with him anyone who chooses to follow . . . be they demon or soul. He will stake everything on this chance for redemption.
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