Deals with the Devil

by Loren D. Estleman (Editor/Contributor), Mike Resnick (Editor / Contributor), Jack C. Haldeman II (Contributor)

A collection of stories about mortals who exchange their souls for eternal youth, fame, love or other irresistible opportunities.
"Introduction" (Deals with the Devil) • Mike Resnick
"A Later Date" • Jack C. Haldeman, II
"Winter" • Michelle West [as Michelle Sagara]
"Pitch" • Jane Yolen
"Red Heart" • Terry McGarry
"Another Damn Deal" • Dean Wesley Smith
"The Party of the First Part" • Jody Lynn Nye
"Discounts" • Jack Dann
"The Seminar from Hell" • David Gerrold
"Confessional" • Laura Resnick
"The Ultimate Compliment" • John C. Bunnell
"For Value Received" • Lawrence Watt-Evans
"Jealous Gods" • Kristine Kathryn Rusch
"Bargaining Chip" • Esther M. Friesner
"The Turing Test" • Anthony R. Lewis
"Infernal DRAMnation • Jack Nimersheim
"Rent-to-Own" • Mark Sumner [as Mark C. Sumner]
"The Easy Way Down from Avernus" • Dave Smeds
"Small Print" • Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon
"Stanley, the Eighteen-Percenter" • Mike Resnick
"Good Night, Duane Allman" • George Alec Effinger
"Moishe in Excelsis" • Barry N. Malzberg
"Nobody Wins in a Deal with the Devil" • Brian M. Thomsen
"Mending Souls" • Judith Tarr
"Just Do It" • Nicholas A. DiChario
"A Deal Is a Deal" • Marie A. Parsons
"Good Intentions" • Chuq Von Rospach [as Charles Von Rospach]
"Passion for the Souls Below" • Gregory Feeley
"Connections" • Barbara Delaplace
"Not Just Another Deal" • Pat Cadigan
"Devildeal" • Robert Sheckley
"Free Will, Baby" • Janni Lee Simner
"Dealer's Choice" • Frank M. Robinson
"Jelly Reds" • John Lutz
"A Girl for Ronald" • Jeff Waldmann
"The Hack" • Loren D. Estleman
"To Walk the Earth" • Thomas Sullivan

Genres: Fantasy, Anthologies, Short Stories, Fiction, Horror

368 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published October 1, 1994

About the author

Loren D. Estleman is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter.

Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.

Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery

Reviews

[Joel Hacker · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, if you don’t like the Edna anthologies or deal with the devil stories, this isn’t for you. I happen to love them, they make me think of being a kid watching the twilight zone, specifically the episode where a man (later revealed as the devil) kept captive in a closet, but also the sort of feel of the series overall. And the visceral thrill of trying to get one over on the devil while matching wits with such a crafty opponent has its own perverse appeal. If you don’t mind a little kitsch, a little tongue in cheek self awareness and the theme itself, I highly recommend this, as the majority of the authors were and are some of the best in the sci-fi, fantasy, and horror fields. Most of them are multiple Hugo and nebula award winners, with a few relatively new comers sprinkled in for spice.
I read this for the first time many years ago while working at a crappy little independent used bookstore. Most days, we had a dozen curstomers at best, so I had lots of time to read anything I came across that caught my fancy. I remembered one particular story Winter in detail if not in name as a favorite and it haunted me for years as I could not remember where I had read it or who the author was. I was lucky enough to come across that information recently entirely on accident while down another rabbit hole, and immediately ordered myself an old paperback of this collection.
Winter still holds up as a personal favorite, and certainly more serious and dramatic in tone than many of the short stories, though by no means not the only serious one, but there’s a lot of standout work here. Several entries deal with the role of computers and technology in deals with the devil, in an era where the Internet was only really beginning. Others give us an interpretation on what can happen when the devil loses, or maybe when devil was never really the bad guy (or in fact doing God’s work) all along.
I heartily recommend for an easy, fun, and satisfying read.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fairly average theme anthology, the topic being the iconic deal-with-the-devil trope. The stories are rather uneven in quality, too many of them being one-note or humorous pieces with no real depth of character. A whole book of them at one time was perhaps too much. I believe my favorite was George Alec Effinger's Good Night, Duane Allman.

[Ebenmaessiger · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Pitch" by Jane Yolen: 4
- As Asimov knows, if it’s short, it’s gotta have a turn. Well, there’s a turn here, into incomprehensibility. Sure, you suss it out, but only on your own dime. An anthology dud, if ever there’s been one. STORY: two screenwriters pitch back and forth, until you realize their success has only ever been a consequence of a devil deal one made years ago, although (the joke!) satan couldn’t cash in on his payoff cause he couldn’t beat “Marg Mitchelson,” big shot Hollywood lawyer in court. Oof.

“A Later Date” by Jack C. Haldeman: 6
- Written with Haldeman’s characteristic blah-ness and studied amateurishness, this piece does exactly what you think it will, and, for me in my current exhausted state, exactly what I wanted it to, which is tell a story quickly. Nothing more, and actually much less. Happy as a clam. STORY: lazy uni lecturer hates grading and loves, obviously, his esoteric subject (authors with “B” last names). Unwitting deal with devil gives him academic fame and financial rewards, but he pays for it, made, effectively, to do eternal paperwork in hell (could be much worse no?).

“Winter” by Michelle Sagara: 8.25
- A mild reversal of the genre, or a new entry in the “fool the devil” deal-with-the-devil sub genre. This one told with a bit of verve, at times overly so, and deep (true!) emotion. STORY: gay man tricks devil into making the deal that he will be loved … by the devil. Complicates things.

“Another Damn Deal” by Dean Wesley Smith: 4.25
- The made-to-order stench here reeks the sulphorous reek of anthology dud. And of the laziest kind: ‘I’m a writer thinking of a story and it just happens to be this one.’ Oof.

“Party of the First Part” by Jody Lyn Nye: 7
- Unless I’m missing some subtler turn, this at least gets credit for being a devilpulp ditty without a twist, although losing more in the process for its non-smoke show. All that said, funny to come right after a dude who wrote a succession of books with the titles of “Writing a Novel in Ten Days,” then “Writing a Novel in Seven Days,” and finally “Writing a Novel in Five Days” — and whose work showed it — for this has at least some of the competence of writerliness involved. STORY: Devil makes deal with lawyer more detail oriented and ironclad than him.

[Steven Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Devil. We know him by many names. And there are people who are willing to sell their souls to him for whatever they want most.

Renowned anthologist Martin H. Greenberg, along with authors Mike Resnick & Loren D. Estleman, have put 32 short fictional stories about “Deals with the Devil” from a variety of authors into one book, each with their own creative literary take on this subject. Some stories will creep you out while others will make you laugh.


A Later Date by Jack C. Haldeman II: - A professor with a very mediocre (and endangered) career finds an ad that can change his life & “be billed at a later date”. (The end closely resembles punishments from Greek mythology) So-So

Winter by Michelle Sagara: A man’s trick when making a “Deal” with a demon forces the demon to try to understand the concept of love. (At the start, this story seemed to have potential, but slowly went downhill) Dull/Bad

Pitch by Jane Yolen: A “deal with the devil” Tv/ movie idea pitch. Dull/Bad

Red Heart by Terry McGarry: A young girl in a Third World country makes a “Deal” to be able to go to a Western-run school against her parents’ wishes. (A good “just when you thought…” Twilight Zone ending) Good

Another Damn Deal by Dean Wesley Smith: A famous writer wants to write a “Deal” story. A tiny, irritated Devil arrives, not wanting him to write it. (Slightly humorous) Good

The Party of the First Part by Jody Lynn Nye: A man’s ridiculous “Deal” irritates Satan, but Satan starts seeing an advantage. (Another humorous story, mostly in the beginning half) Good

Discounts by Jack Dann: A Jewish man in midlife crisis mode buys a Guardian Angel. What he buys instead is trouble. So-So

The Seminar from Hell by David Gerrold: People attend a “corporate” seminar that promotes a “Deal” & the downsides of their “competitor”. (: Sure, the entity behind this seminar doesn’t hide its intentions at all, but that’s what makes the story good b/c it makes you disgusted with the attendees who buy into it) Good

Confessional by Laura Resnick: Satan manipulates a married woman’s attraction to a soldier in WWII Italy, sending her down the dark path. (This is the most horror movie-level story in this anthology. I applaud the author of this one.) Good

The Ultimate Compliment by John C. Bunnell: Fuming over a critic’s review, an author makes a “Deal” to get at least one positive review out of the critic. But the lackluster methods of Hell make him angrier. (Another story with comedy in it) Good

For Value Received by Lawrence Watt-Evans: A man runs into Hell’s bureaucracy when trying to make a “Deal”. So-So

Jealous Gods by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: A Priest who is losing his faith encounters a mysterious figure in his church. So-So

Bargaining Chip by Esther M. Friesner: An imp is summoned, only to be confronted with an AI & its human operator, who is running an experiment on whether AIs have souls. Good

The Turning Test by Anthony R. Lewis: Another computer/soul or no soul & striking a “Deal” story. Dull/Bad

Infernal Dramnation by Jack Nimersheim: An 8 year old playing a Devil-related computer game on his father’s work computer is unknowingly destroying everything. So-So

Rent-To-Own by Mark C. Sumner: A man agrees to let a demon possess his body for a “demon vacation” for 2 weeks. Good

The Easy Way Down From Avernus by Dave Smeds: A dystopian story about making a “Deal” with a corporate devil instead of a real one. So-So

Small Print by Mercedes Lackey & Larry Dixon: A small-time preacher learns of a big TV evangelist’s dealings with the “other side” & is given an opportunity to share in the spoils. Good

Stanley the Eighteen-Percenter by Mike Resnick: A contract negotiator helps a demon get a better employment contract from Lucifer. Good

Good Night, Duane Allman by George Alec Effinger: A music fan’s life goes awry. Dull/Bad

Moishe in Excelsis by Barry N. Malzberg: A man in Purgatory. A deal with God: successfully undo what God accomplished & the man goes  to Heaven. Fail…and down he goes. Dull/Bad

Nobody Wins in a Deal with the Devil by Brian M. Thomsen: A son of Satan, a private detective, helps the Devil find those who don’t pay up for their part of “Deals”. So-So

Mending Souls by Judith Tarr: A mysterious man has a proposal for a poor cobbler on All Hallows Eve. (It's not what you think) Good

Just Do It by Nicholas A. DiChario: An unpublished writer has had enough of “Deal” stories, and invokes “the phrase” that brings the Prince of Darkness. So-So

A Deal is a Deal by Marie A. Parsons: A billionaire’s deal with the Devil is about to hit the “collection” date. Can he find a loophole?  (A “womp womp” ending. And not bad a story, even for being an extremely short one.) Good

Good Intentions by Charles Von Rospach: A consultant is hired to manipulate computer data of another company, not realizing he is playing into the Devil’s hands. Good

Passion for the Souls Below by Gregory Feeley: A playwright is accused of heresy due to connections with a blasphemous playwright. (Hard to read with the 16th century-esqe English) Dull/Bad

Connections by Barbara Delaplace: Samantha is a lawyer who wants to be a high-class one & the lifestyle to match…but getting there isn’t easy. As usual, the Devil arrives “to help”, but she turns him down…or did she? Good

Not Just Another Deal by Pat Cadigan: What if a business person made a “Deal with the Devil”…and the Devil loses? A “Deal” story goes corporate. So-So

Devildeal by Robert Sheckley: Devil deal - A demon “employee” of a deal-making demon can’t understand his boss “giving in” to a human’s requests so easily. So-So

Free Will, Baby by Janni Lee Simner: The Devil makes his “Deals” in a sort of pawn shop in our world. A human employee, working there under the terms of a “Deal” to help her father, wants to renegotiate the terms. Good

Dealer’s Choice by Frank M. Robinson: A novice script writer looking at a life of failure wants to make a “Deal”. Dull/Bad

Jelly Reds by John Lutz: An unemployed man makes a “Deal” for a pair of shoes that makes him super-fast….but only once. And that one time could be his last. Dull/Bad

A Girl for Ronald by Jeff Wallmann: A social failure tries to get a girlfriend through a magic conjuring attempt & it ends up in awkwardness. (Another funny story) Good

The Hack by Loren D. Estleman: A writer who has no original ideas of his own is offered a “Deal”. Dull/Bad

To Walk the Earth by Thomas Sullivan: A Scarecrow makes a “Deal” with Death: Give him souls, and the Scarecrow gets to become human. (A very creepy story!) Good


My overall opinion: A great collection of stories. Some were “Dull/Bad”, but they were very few. Certainly a “keeper” & worthy of 5 stars!

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is in my opinion one of the best collections of short stories I have read in my life.

80% of them are great. 80% of them have very good writing and very in-depth character development.

20% of them are just OK or poor.

Here are my ratings for the individual stories.

A Later Date 5/5
Winter 4.5/5
Pitch 2.5/5
Red Heart 4/5
Another Damn Deal 3.8/5
Party of the First Part 4/5
Discounts 2.8/5
Seminar from Hell 4/5
Confessional 3.5/5
Ultimate Compliment 3.5/5
For Value Received 4.5/5
Jealous Gods 4.8/5
Bargaining Chip 3.8/5
Turing Test 3/5
Infernal Dramnation 2.8/5
Rent-To-Own 4.9/5
Easy Way Down From Avernus 2.8/5
Small Print 4.3/5
Stanley the Eighteen Percenter 4/5
Good Night, Duane Allman 4.5/5
Moishe in Excelsis 2.8/5
Nobody wins in a deal with the Devil 3.8/5
Mending souls 2.8/5
Just do It 3.9/5
A deal is a Deal 4/5
Good Intentions 4.5/5
Passion for the souls Below 2.8/5
Connections 4.5/5
Not just another Deal 4.8/5
Devildeal 4/5
Free Will, Baby 4.9/5
Dealer's choice 4.8/5
Jelly Reds 4.2/5
A girl for Ronald 4.5/5
The Hack 4.5/5
To Walk the Earth 4.2/5

All the authors of the above stories are listed just below the title, so I will not re-list them again.

[pml]

"Winter" by Michelle Sagara

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh.