The Witchstone

By: Henry H. Neff

Narrated by: Ramiz Monsef

An unforgettable, high-stakes, laugh-out-loud funny novel, The Witchstone blends the merciless humor of The Good Place with the spellbinding fantasy of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods.

Meet Laszlo, eight-hundred-year-old demon and Hell’s least productive Curse Keeper. From his office beneath Midtown, he oversees the Drakeford Curse, which involves a pathetic family upstate and a mysterious black monolith. It’s a sexy enough assignment—colonial origins, mutating victims, et cetera—but Laszlo has no interest in maximizing the curse’s potential; he’d rather sunbathe in Ibiza, quaff martinis, and hustle the hustlers on Manhattan’s subway. Unfortunately, his division has new management, and Laszlo’s ratings are so abysmal that he’s given six days to shape up or he’ll be melted down and returned to the Primordial Ooze.

Meet Maggie Drakeford, nineteen-year-old Curse Bearer. All she’s ever known is the dreary corner of the Catskills where the Drakeford Curse has devoured her father’s humanity and is rapidly laying claim to her own. The future looks hopeless, until Laszlo appears at the Drakeford farmhouse one October night and informs them that they have six days—and six days only—to break the spell before it becomes permanent. Can Maggie trust the glib and handsome Laszlo? Of course not. But she also can’t pass up an opportunity to save her family, even if it means having a demon as a guide …

Thus begins a breakneck international adventure that takes our unlikely duo from a hot dog stand in Central Park to the mountains of Liechtenstein. As the clock ticks down, tough-as-nails Maggie and conniving Laszlo will uncover a secret so profound that what began as a farcical quest to break a curse will eventually threaten the very Lords of Hell.

©2024 Henry H. Neff (P)2024 Blackstone Publishing

very creative characters

Didn’t know if I would be intrigued by mythical characters, but found them to be outstanding roles with fun, up to date dialog. Fun to follow from start to finish and hard to put down. Fabulous story

An exciting demonic adventure

A unique story with demons, curses and lots of twists, turns and misdirection. Once you start it’s hard to stop. Not heavy or complicated, but lots of fun. Recommended.

Encore!

This story struck a beat I wasn’t aware I had been missing. This book was a great read and a comfort to me while needing a distraction from the real world. BIG laughs, an out loud “oh no!” here and there may have irritated nearby people…
I was charmed by the character development and the story line overall. Yes. Please.

Wonderful and engaging story

Gripping tale of demons and cursed humans. Tale where adventures and anecdotal humor are full of laugh and sorrow inducing feelings. Narration was spectacular and you will fall in love with all the characters.

loved the characters!

This was a great story! May be one I listen to again! Lots of funny moments.

Delightful

Creative and fun. Good mix of tragedy and triumph. The characters are snarky and relatable.

A Wicked-Good Romp

A Wicked-Good Romp

A demon roaming the streets of New York City comes across numerous adventures that are great fun.
Reminds me of the atmosphere of Buffy The Vampire Slayer: never heavy and very entertaining.

Well crafted story, characters and presentation.

This is not really my kind of book. It was the humorous tag the brought me in. And it was humorous. The story has depth and complexity without being tedious of wordy. Despite many of the characters being ‘unworldly’, they were entirely habitable. Like the story itself, the presenter gave life and depth to each character while remaining firmly in his personal range. The author and presenter drew me into the story in the first chapter and held me to the last. They entertained me and impressed me through their respective arts.

Not as funny as the blurb would suggest

It’s fun. The jokes were fine, and the main character was exactly what you’d expect. Not exactly hilarious in my opinion.

Great story for October!

Bought this to listen to during the last week of October, it did not disappoint. The main characters were developed at the beginning and you thought you knew what was going on...then the curve ball came.
I will listen to this one again, I am sure I missed something, as I listen while working, the epilogue tied the end up nicely but I still had questions...Lazlo was the best villan ever!!! The curse keepers and all of the descriptions of the demons, OMG, the cringe effect!! I loved it all, yeah, I will listen again next October, a great wicked Halloween type book.