The Devil and Miss Prym (Book Review) - S R Santhini

    From the age of reason to this moment, the aspect of 'Good and Evil' is always a burning issue in humankind. Through the novel 'The Devil and Miss Prym' Paulo Coelho gives us a range of fulgurant thoughts regarding this clash between good and evil inside everyone.

The stranger who has been a business man comes to a small village called Viscos  after the tragic experience of losing his family in a merciless murder. His motive was to know whether good or evil exists. He is offering ten gold bar to the village as the reward for a murder and a gold bar to Miss Prym who was being used by him to proceed his game.  Then on the conflict between greed and goodness of Miss Prym, who has been dreaming of leaving the village and living a luxurious life but still loves her village much, began. She somehow let the people know about the offer made by the stranger. Thereafter the writer makes us very anxious to see how the good or evil succeeds in such a battle.  Another thing he implicitly conveys is that people always try to make excuses to justify their own acts of rightness and wrongness. Here the coward village people also find such an excuse not only to get the gold bars but also to expose themselves still good.
The other characters like Berta and the Priest too help give some insights throughout the story. The story, within the story, of Ahab striked me much. It tells us that even in a worst or most cruel person, we can figure out virtues. 
      
 Really loved the book. It was not merely a journey through the most beautiful village but a fictional journey  through the world where still good and evil fight together to make the good succeeded at last.....as Paulo Coelho, my favorite writer, says "Evil had to manifest itself and fulfil its role, so that ultimately Good could prevail.”