Roundly condemned by contemporary literary critics for Corelli's moralistic and prosaic style,[2] it nonetheless had strong supporters, including Oscar Wilde and various members of royalty.

Eventually, when confronted with the true nature of his companion, he renounces evil and returns to society penniless but content with the chance to purify his soul.

It is also a damning critique of the time's social structure – claiming both that Britain's elite are morally bankrupt and hinting an allegiance to ideals that soon gained in prominence after its publication (such as women's suffrage and the universal welfare state).

Corelli is particularly scathing of literary critics (perhaps accounting for their dislike of the work) judging that the only true measure of a book's success is whether common people will buy and read it.

[3] Brian Stableford, discussing Corelli's "narcissistic" novels, described The Sorrows of Satan thus: "as delusions of grandeur and expressions of devout wish-fulfilment go, the fascination of the Devil was an unsurpassable masterstroke".