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Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard
"A sardonic necromancer with a dubious moral compass strikes dangerous bargains to reclaim his soul, only to find that the dead aren’t the only ones with secrets. Darkly funny and delightfully macabre, Johannes Cabal the Necromancer is a sharp, stylish romp through graveyards and gray areas."
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In Johannes Cabal the Necromancer, did you enjoy ...
... the morbid, deadpan humor threaded through infernal deals, necromancy, and occult mishaps?
John Dies at the End by David Wong
If you laughed your way through Cabal’s soul-collecting carnival and his snippy exchanges with Satan, you’ll vibe with the gleefully unhinged, pitch-black comedy in John Dies at the End. Like Johannes’s botched resurrections and gambits, Dave and John stumble into otherworldly chaos—malevolent entities, reality-warping drugs, and bureaucratic nightmares from beyond—with the same shrugging, sardonic wit Cabal deploys while tallying souls and sparring with his (much nicer) vampire brother Horst.
... following a razor-witted, unapologetically amoral protagonist executing grand schemes?
Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman
Miss rooting for a brilliant, ethically flexible operator? As Cabal coldly barters with Hell and manipulates marks under the big top, Dr. Impossible narrates his own supervillain plots with the same arch intelligence and cutting one-liners. Where Cabal finagles contracts and souls to reclaim his own, Dr. Impossible builds doomsday devices and rationalizes every step, delivering that delicious thrill of backing a ‘bad guy’ who’s just too clever (and funny) to resist.
... elaborate cons driven by a ruthless mastermind with a quipping, more personable partner at his side?
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
If Cabal’s infernal carnival felt like an intricate long con—and you loved the acid banter between Cabal and Horst—then the Gentleman Bastards’ swindles will be catnip. Locke engineers multilayered scams across Camorr with surgical precision, while Jean tempers him with heart—mirroring Cabal’s icy calculation softened (a bit) by his charming vampire brother. It’s that same mix of audacity, peril, and razor-edged wit that powered Cabal’s soul-collection spree.
... clever, contract-based necromancy and legalistic bargaining over souls and power?
Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone
Drawn to the way Cabal treats magic like a ledger—pacts, clauses, and fine print with literal Hell? Three Parts Dead turns necromancy into case law. Tara Abernathy must resurrect a dead god by out-arguing cults and corporations, much like Cabal outmaneuvers infernal contracts to claw back his soul. You’ll get that same intellectual cat‑and‑mouse: arcane procedure, sharp courtroom (and back-alley) maneuvering, and the thrill of winning on a technicality.
... a cheeky send-up of Hell’s bureaucracy, loopholes, and apocalyptic red tape?
Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
If Cabal’s opening parley with Satan and his run-ins with infernal paperwork made you grin, Good Omens doubles down on the joke. Demon Crowley and angel Aziraphale spend the apocalypse gaming celestial and demonic rules, exploiting technicalities with the same sly energy Cabal brings to his demonic carnival and soul quotas. It’s irreverent, warm, and wickedly funny—bureaucracy of the damned, but with even sharper punchlines.
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