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vdarcangelo's review
4.0
http://ensuingchapters.com/2013/11/12/review-the-faceless-one/
The Faceless One
Mark Onspaugh
The prologue of Mark Onspaugh’s The Faceless One is a primal delight. We begin in the forested snow-scape of rural Alaska, 1948, where young Jimmy Kalmaku embarks on a dark journey with his uncle deep into the tundra. Hidden within a remote cave is an evil of which Jimmy has never imagined.
It is also where he learns that he will succeed his uncle as shaman and inherit the task of keeping the Faceless One locked up in that cave.
The uncle says, “Remember our path today… I hope you need never come this way again, but you must remember.”
Clearly, we are not finished with the cave.
And neither is Jimmy.
With this spine-tingling opener, Onspaugh has swirled together the elements of great storytelling: odyssey, myth, duty, loss of innocence. There is a sad inevitability in this scene. Present are the generations of tribesmen, forward and back, guarding this secret place—a never-ending watch against something that exists outside of timespace. Something hallowed. Something in the blood.
Onspaugh has a tender touch that imparts soul into this icy epic which spans generations and locations, jumping ahead to present day when Jimmy, now an elderly man, learns that an archeologist has displaced the mask keeping the Faceless One captive.
With the ancient evil unleashed, Jimmy is called to action. He must remember his uncle’s words… and the way to that dark place.
Releasing this book on Oct. 28 is brilliant marketing—not simply because October is a good time for horror fiction, but because the setting of The Faceless One is a set-piece for a chilly night. What better time than when the veil between the worlds is thinnest to encounter a shapeless evil? To follow its trail from Alaska to New York to Seattle and beyond.
From generation to generation, blood to blood.
The Faceless One
Mark Onspaugh
The prologue of Mark Onspaugh’s The Faceless One is a primal delight. We begin in the forested snow-scape of rural Alaska, 1948, where young Jimmy Kalmaku embarks on a dark journey with his uncle deep into the tundra. Hidden within a remote cave is an evil of which Jimmy has never imagined.
It is also where he learns that he will succeed his uncle as shaman and inherit the task of keeping the Faceless One locked up in that cave.
The uncle says, “Remember our path today… I hope you need never come this way again, but you must remember.”
Clearly, we are not finished with the cave.
And neither is Jimmy.
With this spine-tingling opener, Onspaugh has swirled together the elements of great storytelling: odyssey, myth, duty, loss of innocence. There is a sad inevitability in this scene. Present are the generations of tribesmen, forward and back, guarding this secret place—a never-ending watch against something that exists outside of timespace. Something hallowed. Something in the blood.
Onspaugh has a tender touch that imparts soul into this icy epic which spans generations and locations, jumping ahead to present day when Jimmy, now an elderly man, learns that an archeologist has displaced the mask keeping the Faceless One captive.
With the ancient evil unleashed, Jimmy is called to action. He must remember his uncle’s words… and the way to that dark place.
Releasing this book on Oct. 28 is brilliant marketing—not simply because October is a good time for horror fiction, but because the setting of The Faceless One is a set-piece for a chilly night. What better time than when the veil between the worlds is thinnest to encounter a shapeless evil? To follow its trail from Alaska to New York to Seattle and beyond.
From generation to generation, blood to blood.
kamreadsandrecs's review
Just wasn't clicking, and I'd started reading other books anyway. Decided to shelve it for another time.
jstatt's review
4.0
One of my favorite books I've read this year. An adventurous Horror that delves deeply into a lore, and religion that i think is very foreign to most people, and because of it being such a rare subject matter it really makes this kind of a unique book. Or at least unique FEELING. Even if the template for the story might be used in a great many stories this one still stands out because of the characters and way that Mark Onspaugh writes them. They all feel like real people who've lived real lives; they have a ton of depth and personality to them, and they are all very likable. This is a great book which is especially impressive because its the authors debut novel. Definitely recommend if you are a fan of the Lovecraftian/Eldritch stories that lean a bit more to the tamer side of that genre. 4/5 really enjoyed the book.
ryuutchi's review
4.0
The last shaman of the Tlingit village of Yanut is in a retirement home in Seattle. An archaeologist digs up the mask containing the one god who must never be released into the world-- and sets off a series of brutal murders as the mask makes its way to its chosen wearer. I don't know the last time a book creeped me out so thoroughly. While I tend to be a little wary of books featuring native mythology, The Faceless One treated the characters and their beliefs with sensitivity, and also used those beliefs to create a really, truly scary story. The characters were well-rounded, the plot and pacing were strong. I was honestly surprised at how much I enjoyed the book.
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