1984 fantasy novel by
Steven Brust.
To Reign In Hell takes the biblical story of creation and Lucifer's fall from heaven and turns it inside out.
Brust avoids all the obvious and trite pitfalls that this material inherently invites. He doesn't draw caricatures. Instead he fleshes out his characters with true desires and personality.
Satan becomes the reluctant rebel, Don Quixote tilting at windmills. We know how this must end. It's the road travelled and the traveler's observations along the way that keeps our interest.
An excellent book if you can find a copy.
cordelia alerted me to the fact that TRIH is back in print. It's being made available as a
trade paperback. On the cover it is billed as:
A classic of modern fantasy, back in print at last.
The Time is the Beginning.
The place is Heaven.
The story is the Revolt of the Angels --
a war of magic, corruption and intrigue
that could destroy the universe.