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A review by madmooney
Prosper's Demon by K.J. Parker
4.0
Notes for the K.J. Parker fans out there: Goodreads lists this as Prosper's Demon #1, with the [b:Inside Man|55077551|Inside Man|K.J. Parker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1603383307l/55077551._SY75_.jpg|85876126] as #2 in the series, but really the two books complement each other as a pair that can be read in any order (take it from someone who botched the recommended reading order). In Prosper's Demon, we meet the unnamed exorcist first. In Inside Man, we meet the unnamed demon first. Excitement still ensues when you meet deuteragonist in the the protagonists respective story.
It is an unknown era in the world of the Invincible Sun (a religion that pops up in many of Parker's books). Prosper's Demon features an unnamed narrator who also happens to be the world's most powerful exorcist - the only problem here is that our exorcist is very utilitarian and the final state of the human host does not matter after you have violently yanked the evil spirit out. He tells the reader from the get-go that you are not meant to like him and how he wages his war against the enemies of the church.
A couple of interesting points about Parkerland's demons are brought up:
a) Demons are uncapable of creation, but they may be able to pull something off with human collaboration
b) They are immortal, but there are roughly 15 million humans (a growing number) to their limited 72,936. (Is 72,936 significant? Likely not, as as I have been told that K J PArker is not strong with worldbuilding).
c) Demons are the noxious spirits/vapours that were carried away after marinating mother earth for millions of years to make it ready for humans. This is especially interesting because the Theology of the religion of the Invincible Sun states that there are no good guys or bad guys, but rather beings who did one job, and then ended up doing a lesser job after a big disagreement.
Anyways, the emperor's daughter has sired a child, and has hired the great Prosper of Schantz to educate him and train him to be the worlds best Philosipher King.
The only problem is that our exorcist knows that Prosper has a demon inside of him, so he finds himself in a situation where his violent purging ways could do more harm to the world than good.
All in all, I enjoyed this one - am very much hoping that he keeps on building this world up.
One sweet extra detail that I enjoyed:
In an comical twist, the exorcist keeps on meeting the same demon in different hosts, met with resignations of "Oh no, not you again", and please of "Just give me 5 years here, I promise not to do anything terrible!" It is a premise that provides tribute to Douglas Adams' [b:The Hitchhiker's Trilogy|613099|The Hitchhiker's Trilogy|Douglas Adams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360319462l/613099._SX50_.jpg|21398624] series.
It is an unknown era in the world of the Invincible Sun (a religion that pops up in many of Parker's books). Prosper's Demon features an unnamed narrator who also happens to be the world's most powerful exorcist - the only problem here is that our exorcist is very utilitarian and the final state of the human host does not matter after you have violently yanked the evil spirit out. He tells the reader from the get-go that you are not meant to like him and how he wages his war against the enemies of the church.
A couple of interesting points about Parkerland's demons are brought up:
a) Demons are uncapable of creation, but they may be able to pull something off with human collaboration
b) They are immortal, but there are roughly 15 million humans (a growing number) to their limited 72,936. (Is 72,936 significant? Likely not, as as I have been told that K J PArker is not strong with worldbuilding).
c) Demons are the noxious spirits/vapours that were carried away after marinating mother earth for millions of years to make it ready for humans. This is especially interesting because the Theology of the religion of the Invincible Sun states that there are no good guys or bad guys, but rather beings who did one job, and then ended up doing a lesser job after a big disagreement.
Anyways, the emperor's daughter has sired a child, and has hired the great Prosper of Schantz to educate him and train him to be the worlds best Philosipher King.
The only problem is that our exorcist knows that Prosper has a demon inside of him, so he finds himself in a situation where his violent purging ways could do more harm to the world than good.
All in all, I enjoyed this one - am very much hoping that he keeps on building this world up.
One sweet extra detail that I enjoyed:
In an comical twist, the exorcist keeps on meeting the same demon in different hosts, met with resignations of "Oh no, not you again", and please of "Just give me 5 years here, I promise not to do anything terrible!" It is a premise that provides tribute to Douglas Adams' [b:The Hitchhiker's Trilogy|613099|The Hitchhiker's Trilogy|Douglas Adams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360319462l/613099._SX50_.jpg|21398624] series.