Reviews

Black Easter by James Blish

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mislav's review

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dark informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

byejohn's review

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dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Kind of a weird read but fun enough that I liked it overall! I liked the ending a lot!

gentlereader01's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Continuing their tradition of disentombing lost horror gems, Valancourt Press resurrects Blish's singular 1968 diabolical thriller, together with its sequel The Day After Judgement. Cloyed with a surfeit of sowing devastation around the world, wealthy arms dealer Baines and his enablers contract with arch-sorcerer Theron Ware to perform a ritual of supernatural murder, in anticipation of a more bloodthirsty commission aimed at unleashing literal pandemonium on the world. Harried spiritual bureaucrat Father Domenico is dispatched to intervene, but can the straitened resources of good hope to compete with the obscene bankroll of evil? Envisioning "what real sorcery actually had to be like if it existed," Blish deromanticizes the usually sensational gothicism of satanic horror, depicting the arcane tradecraft and realpolitik of Black and White Magic with the cool matter-of-fact precision of a spy novel. These detailed infernal mechanics lull and prime readers for a crescendo certain to shock and awe. Updating the earnest spiritual fantasy of Charles Williams and C.S. Lewis, Blish conjures a startlingly effective hellscape worthy of Hieronymus Bosch.

beyondsolitaire's review

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5.0

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I am so glad I picked it up. There were a couple of moments that didn't age well, but overall this is a fascinating and well-researched depiction of black magic that delves into the reasons one might sell one's soul, assumptions about the fate of the world, and as always the risks that come with attempts to control something more powerful than yourself.