I read in many places of how the book was described as a satire, or a critique of the society and the highest echelons, I tend to think though that Bulgakov and Chekhov same a common trait - they care so much for their characters - or it could be that, with age (I am 41 at this stage), I tended to read the book from a certain perspective, one where I saw these sad little people living ordinary lives and suddenly being offered a ray of hope, a little more of whatever, and they were grasping at straws to get it.
Beyond all, the book reminded me of the immortal words of Roger "Verbal" Kint (or Kevin Spacey) in The Usual Suspects, "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist." With all the wars and disasters that struck us as Lebanese, perhaps admitting the devil came not to Moscow but to Beirut, would be a logical conclusion for the things which have happened with the hope they will not happen again.