Good Omens

My kid got into Good Omens first through the Amazon TV series and then recently read the book. They told me they enjoyed it because they liked the overall story, especially the elements of the separate lives coming together and the detailed descriptions.

They liked it enough that they’re planning to be the Angel Aziraphale for Halloween this year!

An angel and a demon work together to stop the antichrist from destroying the world. Simple enough. But things get off to a rocky start when they spend the first eleven years monitoring the wrong child.

I initially read this book on vacation, and while I don’t remember much about the trip itself, I remember the book! An otherwise-normal pre-teen with the power to shape reality takes this story to appropriate (and absurd) extremes, but at its core, it’s a narrative about good and evil, human nature, and free will—and it approaches these themes with sincerity, nuance, and care.

Come… show more.

Gaiman and Pratchett come together to tell a hilarious story with plenty of heart to it.

Taking inspiration from biblical fantasy, the story focuses on the humanity in the cosmic, the mundane in the absurd. After misplacing the Antichrist, a pair of celestial beings set out to find him before the end of the world.

What could easily be simplified to slapstick situations out of a sitcom is given incredible weight and care. Even in the face of the end of everything, it’s a very human story that shows it’s okay to still be a kid for just a bit… show more.

Good Omens is laugh-out-loud funny from cover to cover. It is absurdist humor at its finest. It’s so endearing, in fact, that it completely changed my writing style, and hence my career. While I will continue my series, so deeply inspired and tickled was I by this apocalyptic comedy that I’ve gone a bit Patrick Rothfuss on you and have written two absurdist fantasy comedies of my own (publish very, very pending) in the interim. This tale of the war between heaven and hell will make you smile from the moment you open it until the moment you close it. 

Comedy is an infrequent mainstay of fantasy, but this story wouldn’t be the same without it. Good Omens displays genius in the pairing of these two prolific authors whether you’re reading it, listening to it, or watching the utterly delightful series adaptation. An apocalyptic battle between heaven and hell is complicated by a rather problematic friendship between the Earth-bound angel and demon orchestrating each side of the war. Along with a blundering cast of characters whose lack of understanding of the human condition and repeated miscommunications only breed further disaster, the opposing elements put into place to end—or save—the world… show more.

I have quite an offbeat, dry sense of humor and this gets into all my books. Good Omens is a terrific blend of fantasy, adventure, and irreverent parody. I really like how the authors took on these well-known characters and events and gave them an unexpected twist. It’s the classic battle of good versus evil except nobody is on the side you think they are. The Apocalypse has never been so exciting!

I was a latecomer to reading Pratchett and didn't leap on Omens until I heard there was about to be a TV adaptation. But holy heck, what I was missing! What's delightful about Omens is how it weaves off-the-wall characters with serious themes and then tosses in a generous dollop of unique British silliness that can range from bone dry to eccentric. Basically, the Antichrist has come to the world and been baby-swapped, and it's up to an angel and a demon to decide whether to help usher in the End Times. Then the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse show… show more.

When angels and demons are playing a game in which the fate of humanity is at stake, what can ordinary mortals do?

In this particular case, just sit back and enjoy the ride. 

When two incredibly talented authors join their efforts and produce a masterpiece of a book—beautifully written and bursting at the seams with humor—all you can do is keep turning the pages. Because you won’t be able to put it down. 

Especially when the main characters’ charisma is through the roof.

You might have watched the series (that’s how I discovered this story, in fact), but even if… show more.

Good Omens hit me in stages. The first stage was that it’s fun and humorous, and then stage two was the build-up of crisp satire and merciless poking fun at people who deserve it, and then it got me with the delicious blend of perfectly drawn stereotype characters that have a life all of their own. I loved the jokes, the deceptively cheerful dark humour, the jaundiced view of bureaucracies and their inherent careless momentum. The book is a grand, defiant raised finger masquerading as a mild-mannered urban (OK, rural) fantasy.

Anyone who loves urban fantasy and snarky humor has got to read Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels. Sir Terry is the ultimate purveyor of snicker-worthy humor and urban fantasy romps, and he brings all of that skill to bear to this delightful collaboration with amazing author Neil Gaiman. Not only is Good Omens a hilarious romp, but it ends up being quite insightful and touching along the way. I, as a religious person, was absolutely tickled by the irreverent religious humor (anyone who really knows God knows he has a great sense of humor) and unexpected mashups of well-known tropes.… show more.