Cover art for Devil's Contract
Published
Melville House, January 2026
ISBN
9781685892074
Format
Softcover, 336 pages
Dimensions
21cm × 14cm

Devil's Contract A History of the Faustian Bargain

Not yet released
Due January 6, 2026.
Fast $7.95 flat-rate shipping!
Only pay $7.95 per order within Australia, including end-to-end parcel tracking.
100% encrypted and secure
We adhere to industry best practice and never store credit card details.
Talk to real people
Contact us seven days a week – our staff are here to help.

"Lively . . . excoriating, eloquent . . . We are all Faustians now." - James Wood, The New Yorker

A devilishly fascinating tour of the Faustian bargain through the ages, from brimstone to blues and beyond, now in paperback . . .

"Lively . . . excoriating, eloquent . . . We are all Faustians now." - James Wood, The New Yorker

A devilishly fascinating tour of the Faustian bargain through the ages, from brimstone to blues and beyond, now in paperback . . .

From ancient times to the modern world, the idea of the Faustian bargain-the exchange of one's soul in return for untold riches and power-has exerted a magnetic pull upon our collective imaginations.

Scholar Ed Simon takes us on a historical tour of the Faustian bargain, from the Bible to blues, and illustrates how the impulse to sacrifice our principles in exchange for power is present in all kinds of social ills, from colonialism to nuclear warfare, from social media to climate change to AI, and beyond. In doing so, Simon conveys just how much the Faustian bargain shows us about power and evil . . . and ourselves.

Related books