The five, irreverent, satirical and imaginative stories contained in Diaboliad caused an uproar upon the book`s first publication in 1925. Full of invention, they display Bulgakov`s breathtaking stylistic range, moving at dizzying speed from grotesque satire to science fiction, from the plainest realism to the most madcap fantasy. Diaboliad is a wonderful introduction to literature`s most uncategorisable and subversive genius.