The Witchstone

De: Henry H. Neff

Narrado por: 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

A strange hero’s journey

Really good realistic characters seemed long at the beginning but then it ended too soon.

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.

Flawless & highly entertaining!

I love it when a plan comes together… A fun read that reminded me of those 60’s capers with fast talking con men are trying to stay ahead of everyone. The narration is well done as well.

Entertaining story, heartfelt, and funny. Who knew a demon could be so complicated?

I haven't enjoyed a book this much in a long time. Wide range of characters that drew you in. Loved the dry humor throughout the story. Loved the story period. Sad it came to an end.

Fantastic Humor!

I loved everything about this story! One of the best. Adorable characters! The narration was sublime.

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.

A great listen.

I loved the adventure, twists, and turns. Great fantasy and real world crossover. Brings out lots of emotions, suspenseful and heart warming, shocking, funny. Narrator was interesting and entertaining. Overall it was a great listen.

Quick write another

This was a great story! I was hesitant at first to read this spectacular book but I'm glad it ended up in my recommendations.
It was an epic ride that really came alive and kept me coming back for more!

And the narration was 10/10 great separation of characters and very easy to tell whose speaking between pauses. I will definitely look for Ramiz Monsef in the future when I'm looking for excellent narration!

Best book I've read in such a long time

Loved this book so much. I could say that it's like if Neil Gaiman and Douglas Adam's had a demonic baby... but it's better even than that. The bureaucracy of hell was intensely funny, the main character Lazslo was simply fantastic (one of those characters who I will literally never forget) and now everyone needs to read this book so I can make funny references that people will understand. The world building was also superb. It would make a great movie. Reeeeead it. You definitely won't regret it.

Evil curses, Demons, and Hell as a corporation - What more could you need!

The hilarious, cozy, adventure fantasy books just keep coming this year but The Witchstone may be one of my favorites of the year though!

I had so much fun listening to this book ( I smiled during the entire epilogue) but the substance was not lacking at all. The narration is so so well done! The story follows Laszio, a nepo-baby demon who works for the society of curse keepers (think of Hell like a corporation) and Maggie Drakeford, a human who is next in line to be cursed by the very curse that Laszio keeps. Laszio is in some tough shit at work so he decides to “work with” Maggie and her brother, Lump, to save himself. The partnership leads to a laugh out loud, descriptive adventure that takes our characters all over the world.

Some how Neff is able to create an incredible story and world while also developing Laszio, Maggie, and Lump! Maggie’s development over the course of the story was so wonderful, and there were moments that felt so real and true. The supernatural elements and supporting characters are also so well done and add to the story in every single way. Finally, this book is ridiculously funny- not only just the dialogue but also the character description (Clarence will always be my fav)!