Hell's Bells: Samuel Johnson vs the Devil

The prequel to this novel, The Gates was well received, so this is Samuel Johnson and his dog, Boswell, vs the Devil, round 11. It is a bountiful, darkly comic feast for young readers who like their fantasy adventure excitement odd, humorous and intellectually stimulating, all packaged up in a massively good read. Hell’s demonic denizens alone are gaspingly weird and the Earthlings who find themselves transported to the horrors of a power struggle in Hell are either worryingly strange or at best eccentric. The hero is a bit bland by comparison. Connolly’s text is rich in description and the repartee sharp. The author’s footnotes with comedic asides and scientific explanations add hugely to the overall quirkiness and fun. Importantly, the whole enterprise provides the astute reader with more than just the story to ponder on; there is plenty to learn here about both science and issues of morality.