Angels, demons, witches, computers and bikers collide in this hilarious adventure by two legendary writers, Neil Gaiman and the late Terry Pratchett. The book was first published in 1990 and has seen a renewal of interest as it’s been adapted for TV (I’ll watch it on the BBC whenever they decide to schedule it). I was sure I’d read this book before, but there’s no record of it in my database.
The story focuses on various characters, the most interesting of these being Aziraphale, an angel, and Crowley, a demon. The two of them have known each other so long that they’re friends, even though one works for Heaven and the other works for Hell. Moreover, they like living on Earth very much, so when Armageddon is about to happen, they want to stop it. I thought there wasn’t enough of these two characters in the book. There is also a group of decent kids, one of whom happens to be the Antichrist but no one else knows that. Plus, a witch called Anathema Device who is deciphering the prophecies of an ancestor and who teams up with a steady sort of chap called Newton who is supposed to be a witchfinder. Everything is centred on an idyllic village called Tadfield in the present day.
Although the story has plenty of fast-paced magical action, it’s not all fun and adventures. There are many conversations about the nature of good and evil. I think there is also a strong message about the environment. I feel that this book has a more thoughtful tone than the blurb and the marketing suggests. To an audience today, the cultural references will seem a little outdated, because it was written nearly 30 years ago. I liked the book a lot and thought it was funny, but I’m not sure I would re-read it. There needed to be more of Aziraphale and Crowley; there was a large section of the book where they were absent and I was wishing they’d turn up soon.
The TV tie-in edition was published in 2019. There are some interesting notes at the end about the authors’ first impressions of each other and how they contrived to collaborate on the novel despite being awake at different hours and having no email.
Fab review! I actually DNF’d this one as I found the humour a bit too forced and too much of it. It’s probably me as I’m not good with books that are supposed to be funny.
I love Terry Pratchett’s discworld series, the only Neil Gaiman book I have read is American Gods. I haven’t read Good Omens but did try to watch the TV version, didn’t get on very well with it and only watched a couple of episodes.
I love the Discworld series too 🙂
I’ve read a couple of Neil Gaiman but not American Gods (do you recommend it?) – maybe the TV series will be easier to follow for those who have read the book. Thanks for your comment!
I started watching the Amazon series but after four episodes I lost interest. Good review of the book, though!
Thank you! 🙂
Hmm, I will not expect too much of the series but I’ll be interested to see how they adapt the book.
I didn’t find all the various threads in this book equally interesting. The dialogues between Aziraphale and Crowley were definitely the best part. But overall, I thought it was a great story!
Totally agree with you! 🙂
Would have liked more angels/demons too.
This could be an interesting read. May have to look into it.
It’s in the spotlight at the moment because of the TV adaptation but I think it’s been quite popular ever since it was published 🙂
I do agree that there’s a thoughtful side to this book! Excellent review!
Yes, it’s not all action adventure. Thanks for your comments 🙂