The novel “Satan’s Grief” by Marie Corelli (the Englishwoman Mary McKay took such a sonorous pseudonym) was published in 1895 and became one of the largest literary events of the Victorian era. It was an extraordinary success for readers, breaking all possible sales records. When critics attacked the writer, she was supported by Oscar Wilde, whose novel “Portrait of Dorian Gray”, written five years earlier, largely anticipated the appearance of “Sorrows of Satan”. Turning to the popular plot about the deal with the devil, Marie Corelli created one of the most ambiguous images of Satan in the world literature: in her novel it is a hero who does not want evil, but creates it, tempting people, but living in the hope that they will overcome their desires and stop sinning. Readers are waiting for non-trivial plot twists and phantasmagoric finale . Interestingly, the first Russian-language edition of the novel (1903) was published under the name Bram Stoker, the author of the novel about Dracula. As a result of this error in Russia, the authorship of "Sorrow of Satan" has long been attributed to Stoker. Today, Marie Corelli’s novel is deservedly recognized as a classic of European mysticism.