Offer people a new creed with a costume and their hearts and minds will follow
I wanted to start reading Neil Gaiman, since I keep hearing wonders about him and his work. So I reserved this one at the library and after I got it I realized that it was a book that he co-author with Terry Pratchett. Even more, asking around in Goodreads, the common feel is that it has a bit more of a Pratchett feeling that Gaiman. Either way, the premise seemed very fun to me, so I gave it a go.
What the book is about
An angel and a demon forging a friendship for thousands of years; the antichrist arriving to Earth and being prepared to bring the Apocalypse; the 4 horsemen riding to meet him and ll of this being predicted by a very accurate witch back in the 17th century. All of this and more can be found in this delightful book, full of satire, dark humor and biblical references. Is the end of the world as we know it...or so it says in the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter
First impressions
The first pages of the book take place while Adam and Eve have been kicked out of Paradise. We see this through the eyes of Aziraphale, an angel, and Crawly (soon to be Crowley) the snake. They first interaction was hilarious and since from the beginning I started giggling I knew it was going to be a good ride.
Final thoughts
Well, as I finish this book, I still don't know who had the biggest impact in the outcome of the book, Pratchett or Gaiman, but what I do know was that it was a great book. The fact that the future of Earth lies in the hands of a Satanic nun who is a bit absent minded was just the beginning of a series of events that made me laugh so hard my boyfriend was a bit worried. Both Aziraphale and Crowley are very endearing as characters, in their own way. They have felt in love with what Earth has to offer and it shows in their behaviour, no surprisingly since they have been here since...forever.
Can we talk about the horsemen? I love the way they were portrayed; from the first physical descriptions it was perfectly clear who was War, Famine, Pollution and off course DEATH. Their effect on the other bikers cracked me up, and then these ones changing their names to make part of the horsemen? I was happy I wasn't in public reading that because I was laughing my head off.
It was also very interesting how the point about how upbringing can beat genes was made. I will not got into too much details because I do not want to spoil anything for anyone, but you get to like the Antichrist.
It has been said that civilization is twenty-four hours and two meals away from barbarism
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