Lucifer, by Mike Carey

I had been hoping to finish reading Lucifer this week, a spinoff from Neil Gaiman's unrivalled Sandman series. As it turns out, my library's only copies of Volume 10 have been listed as "newly acquired" for about 2 months now.  I gave up on waiting and decided to skip right to the last volume. I'll plan on rereading volume 11 after 10 finally makes it into my hands.  The publisher's description suggests that it contains the climax to the whole series.

Lucifer is well done.  As in much of Western literature, Lucifer himself is portrayed as a complex and sympathetic if ruthless character.  I enjoyed following the life he created for himself after abandoning Hell towards the end of Sandman.   A rich cast of supporting characters fleshes out the series, and keeps the reader emotionally engaged.  Women figure prominently, from Lucifer's lieutenant Mazikeen, to the increasingly central half-angel Elaine.  I keep a warm place in my heart for authors who respect their female characters, and aren't content with relegating them to the sidelines.  Elaine is one of my favourite characters at the moment, and I am sad to be done with her.

I found, as the series progressed, that I was less interested in the plotlines as I was in character development.  Lucifer may take place in the Sandman universe, but emphasizes a judeo-christian worldview to an extent that is alien to Sandman.  The parent series revolves around universal  areligious entities, and suggests that all religions are equally valid when one chooses to follow them.  Lucifer seems to suggest that the judeo-christian god created the world.  As a fan of the Sandman worldview, this rubs me the wrong way.  I'm also a fan of consistency, and retcons have a tendency to make me a grumpy critical reader.

Volumes read this week: 6: The Mansions of Silence, 7: The Exodus, 8: The Wolf Beneath the Tree, 9: Crux, 11: Evensong.