FACES OF FEAR
John Saul
Ballantine Books
Thriller
ISBN: 9780345487056
John Saul’s career began with the publication of his first bestseller, SUFFER THE CHILDREN, released in 1977. Now, 31 years later, he has written his 35th novel, FACES OF FEAR. The setting is primarily the Los Angeles area, and the plot involves the age-old debate about beauty either being in the eye of the beholder or skin deep --- or both.
Fifteen-year-old Alison relocates from Santa Monica to Bel Air with her mother, realtor Risa Shaw. The reason for the move is the marriage of Risa to Dr. Conrad Dunn, one of the more famous and prominent plastic surgeons in this wealthy area of California. Although Alison is reluctant to leave behind her friends and life in Santa Monica, she recognizes that she must be supportive of her mother, who was devastated by the fact that her husband, Michael, left her to be with another man. Conrad is also marrying on the rebound of his own personal tragedy --- the suicide death of his last wife, Margot, who was unable to live with the facial disfigurement caused by a horrific boating accident the previous year.
While this story is playing out, another far more sinister development is raising the fear of the surrounding community. A savage serial killer, dubbed the Frankenstein Killer, has been brutally murdering random women. What is most alarming is the fact that the culprit’s modus operandi is strikingly similar to a series of murders that took place 15 years prior in the same area. During both murder sprees, body parts as well as the victims’ adrenal and thymus glands were taken. The entire Los Angeles area is on alert, and no one knows where, why or how this monster will strike next.
Michael, having reconciled with Risa and settled as being lifelong friends, is living with his new partner Scott and working as a news editor for a local television station. One of his more aggressive reporters, Tina Wong, has firmly ensconced herself amidst the Frankenstein Killer case, and her pursuit of this story continues to put her in the way of the local police force and potentially in the path of a killer. As Tina gets closer to the truth, she begins to uncover patterns in the recent series of killings and is able to resurface the similarities to the 15-year-old murders.
Meanwhile, Alison is acclimating to the markedly different world her high school in Bel Air poses. She realizes that the students are living lives of endless privilege and seem to be addicted to plastic surgery enhancements. Not surprisingly, the bulk of these procedures have been conducted by her new stepfather. Risa, upon exploration of her new Bel Air mansion, discovers a hidden basement room that appears to be a shrine to Conrad’s previous wife. What is most alarming to her is the realization that the recent surgical alterations Conrad has planned for Alison bear an eerie resemblance to the images of Margot that are being kept in the basement shrine. Risa and Alison both begin to suspect that things might not be as they appear, and this discovery means that their worst fears might quickly become their reality.
Throughout his successful career as a novelist, John Saul has stuck to a formula that works consistently, and none of his novels are disappointing. Where many of his contemporaries have changed or altered their styles from time to time, Saul has continued his craftsmen-like skill of knowing what will scare his readers, and he hits this mark every time. Another theme that encompasses much of the book and runs through many of his previous works is the use of teenagers as central characters. He states that “Teens are not much different over the years. They all have the same dreams, aspirations and fears.” With FACES OF FEAR, Saul keeps these fears alive, which makes for another entertaining read.
--- Reviewed by Ray Palen
Click here now to buy this book from Amazon.com.
© Copyright 1996-2008, Bookreporter.com. All rights reserved.
