'Williams is one of the most pioneering fiction writers of our time' Andrew Motion New
Statesman Book of the Year 2024 'Witty peculiar and brilliant' Telegraph Christmas Pick
2024 'A book completed by a master of the craft. Prepare to be moved' Guardian 'Holy
gorgeous and politically red-hot masterpieces' Daily Telegraph 'An intricate perfectly
articulated work of art' Times Literary Supplement Joy Williams offers ninety-nine
illuminations on mortality as she brings her powers of observation to Azrael the Angel of
Death and transporter of souls. Balancing the extraordinary and the humble the bizarre and
the beatific the book presents Azrael as a thoughtful and troubled protagonist as he confronts
the holy impossibility of his task his uneasy relationship with Death and his friendship with
the Devil. In this follow-up to Williams' 99 Stories of God a collection of connected beings
- ranging from ordinary people to great artists such as Kafka Nietzsche Bach and Rilke to
dogs birds horses and butterflies - experience the varying fate of the soul transient yet
everlasting. Profound sorrowful witty and ecstatic Concerning the Future of Souls will
leave readers awestruck in their confrontation of life in the face of death.
