"So this is it. The book that earned Rushdie the sentencing of the fatwa, a death sentence that sent him into hiding for years (review of those years to come as soon as I have read his biography detailing exactly that period). Even publishers and translators of this book from across the world were attacked and, in some cases, killed by religious fanatics. Amazingly, the fatwa is still in effect as can be witnessed by the latest attack on Rushdie that cost him an eye and injured him further.

You might be asking WHY. Well, I read this book in order to find out.

The story is about two men, both Indians, both actors, both Muslims, both expatriates living in England. They both sit on a plane that gets hijacked by Sikh separatists. When the plane explodes, they are both magically transformed - one into the archangel Gabriel and one into the devil. But the novel also tells of racist profiling and police brutality, of mental health issues, of the search for one's identity, and more. It read more like a commentary on British colonialism and immigration than anything.

As almost expected, there is no real faux-pas here. Sure, there is that third and last dream sequence where a fanatic expatriate Imam is a satiric take on Khomeini and we all know that religious fanatics aren't taking satire very well (just ask the people at Charlie Hebdo), but the reaction is definitely way over-the-top.
I presume the second reason is that the title and an element of the story tells of the (by now "erased") part of Mohammed's story where he accidentally believes something Satan tells him, thinking it was God's word. Meaning, the prophet isn't infallible and religious people usually don't respond well to that either.

Now, as for the book itself, all I can say is that Rushdie has an amazing writing style. It's dense but never boring, it never feels like a chore to read but like a trip through a wonderful dreamland. The description never read like something I'd enjoy too much but the richness of the prose, the craftmanship, the erudite mythological elements, all combined to form a wonderful tale.

As a last note, I'd like to draw attention to how pleased I am that this book exists in the first place. Given all the fanatics did, how many people died at protests and in attacks, I'm appreciating the ones that dared publish it regardless all the more - it certainly wouldn't happen nowadays (I have no faith in the bravery of journalism or the publishing industry, they just don't make them like that anymore)."

"This volume ... beware of massive spoilers for the series so far! Only read this review if you're caught up or don't mind.

I thought Harry dying was the most shocking thing in this series ... boy, was I wrong!

Yes, Harry has been killed at the end of the previous installment. But for some reason, he's back. Not alive, but a ghost. Sorta. And he's given a choice: due to some irregularity, he can find his murderer and save 3 of his friends from death ((view spoiler)[which turned out to have been one hell of a bluff by none other than Karrin's father's ghost (hide spoiler)]), or he can move on. Not hard to guess which one he chose.
So he haunts Chicago and BOY, has that city changed in the 6 months since his passing!
Several factions are fighting for control worldwide after Harry wiped out almost all (or as good as all) Red Court vamps. Ooops. And yes, some of these factions have started turning their eyes towards Chicago as well. Who would have thought that a wizard in the Yellow Pages had made such a difference, ey? Well, we did, of course.
Anyway, Murphy had to team up with Marcone (kinda) and everyone's scared shitlless of Molly.
Not a good situation in which to drop the info that good old Harry is still around of sorts.

I loved seeing more about Mort and him getting a chance to redeem himself since I've always been a fan of his magic. Sir Stewart took the cake though. Hence me being so (view spoiler)[devastated when he almost got annihilated and elated when Uriel gave him a job and said he could be "mended" (hide spoiler)].

Worst of all, emotionally, was realizing what had happened to Molly. I mean, that was a kick in the nuts! I sure hope she can get better with time. And yes, I'm also hoping that Harry now has two apprentices. *grins*

No, it's not a spoiler that Harry ISN'T moving on at the end of this book since the series continues so duh! However, it was insanely gratifying to put the puzzle pieces together and get that old noir feel instead of one big boss battle after another. And let me tell you: this was even more riveting than the other installments so far, despite Harry not having been a big bad mover and shaker in the magical world.

So many threads came together, so many encounters and events from the previous 12 books played an important role and I'm proud to report that I figured it out before the book gave the two big reveals. *beams*
I've always loved puzzling so knowing (more or less) what had happened and how/why didn't dampen my enjoyment of folllowing the story one bit.

Fantastic worldbuilding, an emotional look at most characters, a formidable baddie and deeper look at a hitherto almost unexplored part of this universe turned this into my favorite installment so far!



P.S.: It only took me this long to finish this book because I was in Italy for a wedding, am helping to organize a bachelorette's party, organized and then went to my company's summer party and am preparing for a cello concert. So, busy month. It was hard staying away from this book, make no mistake."