Exceptional work. Even some misconceptions exists its very interesting work. ( )

Wow, K.J. Parker is truly a masterful writer. This is a book with compelling storytelling and beautiful prose, all packed within a rather thin volume. The main character Saloninus is the greatest philosopher of all humankind, and in his old age, he trades his soul to the devil for 20 years of youth to complete his life's work. Or so he says.

There's somewhat of a mystery element as the story slowly reveals what Saloninus is up to, and we are kept glued to the pages as we, along with the demon who is assigned to assist Saloninus, try to figure out his true motives. In the end, the ultimate reveal turned out to be a little predictable. Still, the journey to get there was executed well for the most part.

My only real complaint, which is no fault of the author's, is that I didn't realize this book was actually the 2nd of a series, and while it is completely understandable as a standalone, it does seem to make reference to events and characters from the first book. That, and the fact that it was hard to differentiate between the narration of Saloninus and his demonic assistant, which the book alternates between--I think their voices could have been made a little more distinctive from each other's, but it's really a minor quibble. ( )

https://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2022/03/202241-devil-you-know-k-j-parker.html ( )

The createst philosopher, alchemist and conman of the ages makes a deal with the devil -- his immortal soul for renewed youth, twenty years of guaranteed life, and everything he could wish for during that time. But, as the devil keeps asking himself throughout the novella ... why would such a smart man possibly make such a terrible deal?

The short novel delivers on this intriguing premise, but it doesn't go beyond that. The narration -- first person, tossing back and forth between the two parties of the deal -- is well done and entertaining, and the pages breeze by. And there is a twist or two, as one would hope, and they're satisfactory. But perhaps not much more than that. It's a high bar to clear, delivering on this stellar premise, and so perhaps Parker simply set my expectations too high for his own good when I found my experience at the end to be good, but not great. That said, I see he's written two other short novels involving the same character, and I'm now intrigued to try them, so clearly, I liked it rather a lotl. ( )

That was a fun read. It's a book that reminds you what good characters do for any book. The only problems are that sometimes your not sure who is say what? Thats a simple problem with a simple solution. Simple reasoning is the core strength of the story. While you believe the protagonist has a devious cunning plan the truth is simpler. There is a logic gap that you realize at the end but it does nothing to take away from what you've read. I'm looking forward to reading more of this authors works. This book was a well executed story. ( )