Descent Into Hell

I finally fulfilled one of my life-long ambitions: I read a Charles Williams novel! Now maybe this doesn't seem like an earth-shattering event to you, but considering that Mr. Williams is frequently out-of-print and I am frequently out-of-cash, just purchasing the book was a big step in my self-actualization.

Williams was a contemporary of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, although his works have never proved as popular as his more-famous friends'. The book, Descent Into Hell, has a much darker tone than anything this side of Narnia or Middle Earth.

Did I just type "darker tone"? I meant DOWNRIGHT SCARY. To Williams, the "spiritual world"” coexists --and quite often collides -- with this physical realm. Spirits roam freely over Battle Hill. A young woman meets her doppelganger to unexpected consequences. A man chooses the embrace of succubus to the uncertainty of a real relationship. The book examines the greatest of all loves -- laying down your life for another's -- and its opposite, the state of being so self-centered that you can no longer love or be loved.

Descent Into Hell isn't an easy read. Williams' prose almost comes off like poetry, and the many references to myth and legend had me reaching for the encyclopedia more than once. The novel jumps back and forth in time and space without giving obvious cues. But the experience was worth the challenge and I look forward to tracking down his other works at used bookstores.