Books › Azazel
Azazel
355 pages
A delightfully wry collection of cautionary tales where magical favors inevitably backfire in the most spectacular and mundane ways.
What it feels like
Reading this collection feels like pulling up a chair at a quiet tavern next to a delightfully eccentric raconteur who insists on buying the next round. It is a brisk, cozy, and thoroughly absurd experience, built on the classic framework of the 'club story' where tall tales are spun for an eager audience. The mood is jovial and lighthearted, steeped in the ironic humor of the monkey's paw trope—where every granted wish goes spectacularly, hilariously wrong. The prose is conversational yet mock-formal, perfectly capturing the pompous charm of its bumbling protagonist. It will delight fans of gentle, classic fantasy humor who appreciate a witty, episodic romp through the endless follies of human desire and unintended consequences.
- Mood
- jovial
- absurd
- cozy
- whimsical
- Tone
- wry
- satirical
- conversational
- ironic
- lighthearted
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- unintended consequences · the folly of human desires · hubris · eccentric friendships · the monkey's paw trope
- The writing
- Conversational and witty, employing a mock-formal, slightly pompous vocabulary that perfectly captures its eccentric narrator.
- The arc
- The reader is carried from amused curiosity through the delightful anticipation of inevitable disaster, landing in chuckling satisfaction.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love gentle, classic fantasy humor, ironic twist endings, and the cozy atmosphere of a tall tale told over drinks.
Content notes
- alcohol consumption
- mild comic peril
About the book
He's two centimeters tall. He's fiery red. He has magical powers strong enough to wreck a normal human's life...all with the best intentions, of course.
George Bitternut, an eccentric linguist and deadbeat, stumbles onto an ancient incantation that calls forth this diminutive demon of astonishing wizardry. Unfortunately, Azazel refuses to do anything for George's personal gain—but he agrees to help out a few of his friends.
With Dr. Asimov himself as eager audience, George recounts eighteen episodes of life with Azazel—disastrous, hilarious episodes that could only spring from the science fiction's most fertile imagination.
Contents: * The Two-Centimeter Demon * One Night of Song * The Smile that Loses * To the Victor * The Dim Rumble * Saving Humanity * A Matter of Principle * The Evil Drink Does * Writing Time * Dashing Through the Snow * Logic Is Logic * He Travels the Fastest * The Eye of the Beholder * More Things in Heaven and Earth * The Mind's Construction * The Fights of Spring * Galatea * Flight of Fancy
Description from Open Library.
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