Johannes Cabal, a necromancer of some little infamy, has never pretended to be a hero of any kind. There is, after all, little heroic about robbing graves, stealing occult volumes, and being on nodding terms with demons.His purpose, however is noble. His researches are all directed to raising the dead. Not as monstrosities but as people, just as they were when they lived: physically, mentally, and spiritually. For such a prize, some sacrifices are necessary.One such sacrifice was his own soul, but now he sees that was a mistake - it's not just that he needs it for his research to have validity, but now he realizes he needs it to be himself.Unfortunately, his soul now rests within the festering bureaucracy of Hell. Satan may be cruel and capricious but, most dangerously, he is bored. It is Cabal's unhappy lot to provide him with amusement.In short, a wager: in return for his own soul, Cabal must gather one hundred others. Placed in control of a diabolical carnival - created to tempt to contentiousness, to blasphemy, argumentation and murder, but one may also win coconuts - and armed only with his intelligence, a very large handgun, and a total absence of whimsy, Cabal has one year.Johannes Cabal the Necromancer is the first novel written for Jonathan L Howard's Johannes Cabal series. Before the novel, Howard has written several short stories in the Cabalverse. JC the Necromancer is followed by Johannes Cabal The Detective and Johannes Cabal And The Fear Institute.Howard has also written a character sheet for Cabal, available here.
Johannes Cabal the Necromancer has examples of:
All There in the Manual: In addition to the three main novels (Necromancer, Detective, and Fear Institute,) Johnathan L. Howard has also written several short stories about Cabal. These short stories can be read as standalones, but provide readers of the novels extra insight into Cabal's character. (Good luck finding “Exeunt Demon King” and “Johannes Cabal and the Blustery Day” - they were published in a now-defunct magazine.) The House of Gears, the latest Cabal short story is available online.
Jonathan L. Howard also released a Dungeons and Dragons character sheet for Cabal. It includes a good amount of additional back-story and even includes floor plans of Cabal's house.
Old Man: You're not nice. Cabal: Your...founder has given me the task of sending one hundred souls to eternal torment. To be quite frank, I don't think my name is ever going to become a byword for popularity.
Carnival of Killers: In a more literal sense. Per Horst's suggestions, Cabal summons a variety of demons for is carnival, each with different specialties. Some of them do include killing.
Deal with the Devil: Deconstructed. Cabal initially sells his soul to Satan in exchange for the secrets of necromancy. Cabal is dissatisfied with his soulless state as he is unable to trust the results of his experiments. He spends the first novel trying to get his soul back via another deal with Satan.
Deadpan Snarker: Horst and Johannes, but the former is more prone to this.
Old Man: Neat, eh? Goes down a bomb at parties, I can tell you. Cabal: Really? I’ll have to hold a soirée just to impress my friends. Old Man: You haven’t got any friends. Cabal: I’m not holding a soirée, either. You have a problem with sarcasm, don’t you?
Evil Is Deathly Cold: When angered, Satan's rage creates intense cold and freezing wind around him, and is even powerful enough to temporarily freeze parts of Hell.
Evil Is Hammy: Ratuth Slabuth loves a good entrance. Rufus Maleficarus also one for dramatics - a fact that Cabal is happy to take advantage of.
Evil Old Folks: Satan's avatar the "Little Old Man" is this, essentially the Platonic ideal of a crusty old man.
Faux Affably Evil: Satan, his avatar the Little Old Man and the construct Mr. Bones are all characterized as having a front of charm and bonhomie that covers their actual cruel and demonic nature.
Genre Savvy: Horst, when asking Cabal for some blood:
Horst: Look, what's bothering you? It's the homoerotic aspect, isn't it? (Runs after Cabal) Well, don't flatter yourself. It's just a transfusion, for crying out loud.
Girl Next Door: Leonie Barrow. Beautiful country girl that Cabal is drawn to at first sight, or bothers him by looking familiar, she is also the only female in the book that is portrayed in a truly positive light, especially when compared to Femme Fatale Layla or Nea Winshaw.
Heel Realization: Played with. Cabal knows he's not a hero and that what he does is evil, but he considers it necessary. Until Horst's suicide shows him he's gone too far.
Hero Antagonist: Frank Barrow plays this role in the later part of the novel.
Monster Clown: After they reach a certain point of decay, Dennis and Denzil have their horrible faces masked by paint and are enlisted as clowns, because people like clowns, right?
Horst: (to Johannes) Good God, you’re not still bitter about that time at Conrad’s party, are you? I’ve apologised for that a dozen times over. It was a joke.
No Social Skills: Cabal realizes this, but concludes that people are simply unworthy of his time. This comes back to bite him when his wager with Satan requires him to run a carnival. Cabal is grudgingly forced to run to his brother Horst for help.
Our Vampires Are Different: Horst has both proven and debunked many of myths: sunlight kills him, but he doesn't need the coffin. Vampirism is spread via the mixing of blood and not the bite. He still has a reflection.
Science Hero: If you believe that Cabal is a hero.
Serial Killer: One of the prison escapees. He kills people because that is the only way for people to notice him.
Shout Out: The "Loofah Lady" is a nod to Bram Stoker's "Bloofer Lady" in Dracula, and The Rufus Maleficarus episode is an extended Shout Out to the Cthulhu Mythos.
Spanner in the Works: Several. Most notably Horst, who steals one of the 100 contracts Johannes needs to get signed in order to win his bet with Satan.
The Spock: Surprisingly, Cabal's soulless state did little to contribute to this.
The Vicar: Cabal meets a stereotypical one toward the end of the story and in a nod to the stereotypical laxness of the Church of England, when Cabal tells him that he is a Satanist, the Vicar simply asks if Cabal is happy with that choice, which has the effect of an Armor-Piercing Question on Cabal.
When He Smiles: At one point, Cabal smiles following a Pet the Dog moment, and the narration notes that for once, his smile wouldn't have scared small children.
You Killed My Father: Rufus Maleficarus claimed that Cabal killed his father. Cabal claims that it didn't count because, technically, Maleficarus's father was already dead.
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