The Face of Fear
Written by Dean Koontz under a pseudonym in 1977, THE FACE OF FEAR traps a psychic former mountain climber and his girlfriend in a high-rise skyscraper on a Friday night with a serial killer dubbed “the Butcher.”
Up until now, Mr. Butcher has butchered only women, but he’s a mite bit pissed after the psychic appeared on live TV and had a vision to his identity, all but exposing him. He must pay … with his life! A few dead people later, the Butcher plays cat and mouse with the couple from story to story, until the gal pal realizes the only way out on this blizzardy night is to scale the side of the building. Too bad our psychic hasn’t been able to get back in gear after a near-fatal Mt. Everest accident five years prior.
THE FACE OF FEAR may sound a little silly, and it is, but damned if doesn’t generate a chunk of supsense. Most of that comes in the book’s first two-thirds, as the third act grows tiresome with meticulous descriptions of climbing gear in use and is saddled with a big “reveal” that you’re likely to have guessed before the happy couple even sets foot in the high-rise. Imagine if DIE HARD had a rape-happy slasher in place of a German terrorist, and you’ve got a feel for FEAR. It’s not Mr. Koontz’s best work by a long shot, but good enough to reaffirm my belief that anything the man writes is worth reading – past, present or future.
[...] Early on, HOUSE elicits a major case of the creeps. That power is diminshed somewhat by an overlong chase (roughly two-thirds of the book), which further serves to underwhelm the ending. Still, its premise and pacing recall some of the down-and-dirty thrillers of Dean Koontz (not to mention elements of SAW and DELIVERANCE), and predictable it is not, partly because the authors hold as much information from us for as long as possible, lending the events in the basement a surreal, nightmarish quality. Their writing style is simple but effective, drawing you in early on and refusing to loosen its grip. [...]
[...] BOOK TWO – CITY OF NIGHT by Dean Koontz and Ed Gorman • DEMON SEED by Dean Koontz • THE FACE OF FEAR by Dean Koontz • FOREVER ODD by Dean Koontz • THE HUSBAND by Dean Koontz • ODD THOMAS by Dean [...]
[...] BOOK TWO – CITY OF NIGHT by Dean Koontz and Ed Gorman • DEMON SEED by Dean Koontz • THE FACE OF FEAR by Dean Koontz • FOREVER ODD by Dean Koontz • THE GOOD GUY by Dean Koontz • THE HUSBAND by [...]