The most devilish books

 Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, the prince of darkness - call him what you will, but the devil is a such an intriguing force of evil that countless writers across many centuries have woven a devil, the devil or simply demonic themes into their work.

The Faustian pact has been reworked many times – from Christopher Marlow’s Doctor Faustus, which popularized this age-old German legend, to Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray – while temptation is also a common reoccurring theme with John Milton’s Paradise Lost being the classic example.

Dante's Inferno (which has recently been turned into a video game), C.S. Lewis, Washington Irving, and, of course, the king of the occultists, Aleister Crowley, have all ventured into this dark territory. Joe Hill, son of Stephen King, also takes a trip through hell with his supernatural thriller Horns. Devilish writing veers from straight horror to anarchic humor to the completely unexpected.

Get to know the devil in literature.

Devilish books

Melmoth the Wanderer

By Charles Robert Maturin

A reworking of the Faustian pact – an example of classic gothic literature. (1820)

The Sorrows of Satan

By Marie Corelli

The devil comes to London and helps a starving novelist – a satire on Victorian life. (1895)

The Devil in Love

By Jacques Cazotte

An occult romance – Satan falls head over heads in love. (1772)

The Mysterious Stranger

By Mark Twain

Some Austrian boys meet an angel called Satan, who educates them – a satire on religion. (1916)

The Master and the Margarita

By Mikhail Bulgakov

Satan brings hell to Moscow. Written during Stalin’s show trials. Suppressed for years. (1966)

Rosemary's Baby

By Ira Levin

Levin’s vision of satanism in suburbia. Should not be read by mothers-to-be. (1967)

Blood Meridian

By Cormac McCarthy

Many see the Judge Holden character as demonic in this Western novel. (1985)

Hell

By Robert Olen Butler

Definitely not Dante, a TV presenter endures a novel but hellish experience. (2009)

Me and the Devil Blues

By Akira Hiramoto

The life of blues guitarist Robert Johnson, who sold his soul to the devil, is re-imagined. (2008)

I, Lucifer

By Glen Duncan

It’s not easy being the fallen angel, who takes over the body of a depressed writer. (2003)

The Witches of Eastwick

By John Updike

Devilish Darryl Van Horne sets up his own little coven on Rhode Island. (1984)

Good Omens

By Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

The world is coming to an end – a very funny book indeed. (1990)