During the 1980s, slashers terrorized America. With machetes and masks, these unstoppable killers stalked college campuses, quiet suburbs, and lakeside cabins.
Thirty years ago, Bobbi Metzger survived a massacre at her 16th birthday party. She spent decades putting her life back together.
Tonight, Bobbi will face a new killer: a high-tech slasher hell-bent on opening the doorway to an abyss of unimaginable horror.
How long can Bobbi survive this nightmare? What will she do to protect the people she loves? How much blood is she willing to spill?
Source | Format | Pages | Publisher | Genre | Publication Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
R&R Book Tours | ebook | 412 | Neoplastic Press | Horror / Thriller | October 14th, 2017 |
*My thanks to Shannon of R&R Book Tours for providing me with a copy of Mask Beneath Her Face in exchange for an honest review!*
I have this weird relationship with anything-horror. The modern-day Hollywood horror movies just don’t cut it for me- they make me laugh rather than the hairs on the back of my neck rise. I mean, all these weird looking creatures? Yeah, whatever. But bang a door and I jump as if all the world’s sins rest upon my soul; bury a cleaver into a skull and I am fighting back the bit of ‘will I or won’t I gag?!’ Odd, I tell ya. Oh, and not to mention that in horror fiction the characters are mostly always eejits. They always have to open the door, go outside, look under the bed, open the box, etc… you know? But if they weren’t acting like this, the genre wouldn’t exist!
So, why, oh why, you may wonder, did I want to read this book? Book blogger recommendations truly do make a big impact. I came across a review of this book on Kim’s blog and thought- ahhh, colour me intrigued and cover me in gore! And as fate would have it, not long after, I was offered a review copy.
And that cover- isn’t it just a beaut’??? *hearteyes* (even though spiders are freaks and I hate them)
Right! Babble over… let’s move on to the actual review, ahoy!
Revenge was a mouthful of ashes, nails driven into one’s own palms.
On the scale of innocent to holy batshit crazy, I think I tip the scales towards the ‘lock me up‘ for loving this slasher horror book so wholeheartedly. It was a non-stop thrilling read- seriously– I just couldn’t stop turning the pages! It’s a whole lot of death, yes, but it’s done packaged so that chapter to chapter I was offered more and more intrigue. The story has paranormal slashers, but they felt so real. There’s no freaking question about how bloodthirsty they were and that there was simply no stopping them. What made this book ultimately a complete joy ride were the characters and the humour. I swear to gods, I cackled like a crazy person in parts…
“I’m in town,” she said. “But way too tired to make it all the way to your place. Staying at a motel in Morrisville, near the airport.”
“Is it nice?”
She checked the nightstand drawer for a Bible, but found a pronographic magazine. Holy shit, with all the porn on the Internet, they still print magazines?
“Nice? Oh, Jesse, listen, this place is swank. Super-classy. All the rats are wearing little tuxedos.”
She flicked through the magazine. No dicks. Pass.
Mask Beneath Her Face 100% shows up to provide a full thrilling horror experience! Forget about the one slasher versus a few victims, this book delivers FOUR slashers! Holy hellfest! Imagine that! Each of those slashers is after their own… erm… specific brand of death and when I discovered one of the slasher’s own POVs included (a creepy wooden doll, no less) I squealed with delight.
Four slashers… in need of warm bodies…
Bobbi, Sam and Jesse are all survivors of past slasher attacks. We get their full stories of past and present and get to know them pretty well. I feel like I know Bobbi, Jesse, Sam on a very personal level and that is a sign of good character development. They all have their lives and issues and they are well past their teenage years. Yes, we are dealing with mature characters who have been there, done that and come away from their perspective massacres with lifelong personal issues. Bobbi loves her booze and pills, Sam has anxiety and breaks into sweats the minute he sees a doll, and Jesse hasn’t looked into a mirror for a long time. Broken and tired they have no respite until they are well and truly dead… but will that death come by the hand of a slasher or due to old age? Answer to this question in the book- I’ll be testing you on that in a few months! 😉
And then we have Cristina. A young woman who has been through a very violent and abusive childhood and is now battling through bullying in the education system. Cris is not a pretty girl but she’s smart. Very smart!
Cris, Bobbi, Sam and Jesse consider each other close family, after all, they all have something violent and horrific in common, and the atmosphere in between them all is truly heartwarming.
Mask Beneath Her Face is more than blood spatters on walls and a mindless chase through houses and woods. The plot is blown into epic proportions as a determination to deliver revenge is revealed. And when I say epic, I mean epic– you can’t even imagine! The detail and thought process that went into this book seems to be a true work of an intelligent artist.
“Fuck you, dummy,” she gasped.
“Flattery will get you nowhere. I’m impervious to that kind of–“
“Pencil dick.”
His hinged mouth gaped open. “Okay, you’re dead.”
I am fairly certain that this book won’t be for everyone, BUT if you can do horror and if you can manage thrillers with a bit of gruesome detail, don’t hesitate to pick this book up. It really is more than just non-stop cleaver-in-skull. A wholesome reading experience with fully-formed characters, secrets and deceit, hopelessness and humour and a cracking ending!
Find Mask Beneath Her Face on Goodreads ¦ Amazon UK ¦ USA
About the Author
Rafael Chandler writes novels (Hexcommunicated, The Astounding Antagonists), video games (SOCOM 4, Rainbow Six: Lockdown, MAG), and tabletop role-playing games (Teratic Tome, Lusus Naturae). He’s a metalhead, a kaijuphile, and a gorehound.
Rafael Chandler on Website ¦ Facebook ¦ Instagram ¦ Goodreads
I can honestly say I have never even thought of the slasher genre being something you would find on a bookshelf.
After this review, though, I am very intrigued!
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I suppose that I’d like to see the slasher movies of days gone by treated like the myth of the zombie — something that is adapted, built upon, and explored in writing.
A hundred years ago, Haitian lore regarding zombies was explored in writing (in books like The Magic Island); decades later, filmmakers like Romero embedded the zombie in the mainstream consciousness. Next thing you know, Kirkman and Brooks have created their own literary works, which were then adapted back into film and TV.
So I thought, “Why not take the same approach with the similarly-codified tropes of the slasher movie?” And this novel was the end result…
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Wow! Thanks for this insight, Rafael! 🙂 I always find it very interesting to discover how authors started out with their ideas… where these ideas even come from… Cool!
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I think you should give it a go Aaron! Entertaining read! 🙂
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Oh boy, this sounds intense! I don’t mind horror if it’s horror with a purpose, and it sounds that this one has an intriguing plot as well… I’m seriously tempted. Great review!
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If you do read it, I hope you enjoy it, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on it! I wanted to explore my feelings about my Peruvian heritage, and my nostalgic affection for the eighties — obviously, you can’t do any of that without masks and machetes, right? 🙂
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I read the same review that you did. And am really, really looking forward to reading this one. This review was awesome..and at the same time funny too: “Holy hellfest 😂😂😂”
I agree with you about modern day horror. So much of it depends on CGI effects instead of actual creepyness. I can’t remember the last time when I saw a really good and scary horrormovie. I mean some of them are enjoyable..but one that really made me scared? Can’t remember.
Great review! 😊
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You’ve GOT to read this ASAP Michel! I don’t often say this, but I 00% guarantee you’re going to love this.😊
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Hey Kim 😀😀 It’s so good to see a comment from you again. I’ll be honest when I say I was getting worried. But I’m very glad to see you here again. Hope you are feeling better a bit 😊😊
I promise I will try and read this ASAP 😊
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Thanks Michel. I’m still having a rough go of it so I may be MIA for at least part of this week as well, but don’t worry. While I’m in a lot of pain it’s nothing life threatening.🤗
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Oh Kim, I am so very sorry to hear you are in such pain. I wish I could do something for you. Please take care and feel better soon. I miss you 😢
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Thank you so much my friend.😙
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Same here — horror movies seldom creep me out the way that I want them to. Every time I think about the night that I watched Martyrs, or Inside, I get goosebumps. Hoping that Hereditary delivers the goods. We’ll see!
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Martyrs…now that was a goosebumps inducing film. Wow…talk about a film that leaves you in total shock 😱😱
Yes..Admittedly Hereditary looks pretty good. Keeping my fingers crossed for it 😊😊
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OK, you guys have me all sorts of intrigued- I have not see Martyrs… I will make a point of watching it! 🙂
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It’s ferocious. Part of the short-lived (but breathtaking) wave of films called The New French Extremity. But be sure to see the 2008 original, not the recent remake! Same goes with Inside — the remake’s no good. Alas.
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Oh, I think you’ll love this book… I wasn’t like scared-scared reading it but dayum, it was bloody in parts and really surprising in parts and in a LOT of parts it was freaking hilarious 😀 Plenty of suspense to keep the pages turning! 🙂
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Yay! *Happy Dancing!* I’m so glad you loved this. Absolutely phenomenal review! I’m begging Rafael for a sequel.
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Thank you so much, Kim. You’ve exposed a lot of people to the madness of Cris Vargas! Very grateful. As for the sequel — I’ve already got notecards nailed to the wall with some scribbles on them, so it’s just a matter of time…
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Woot!🤗🤜🏻🤛🏻
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Well, your review was good and after reading the book- bang on as well. I am super glad I went for this book because this is the kind of horror I wouldn’t mind reading again… 🙂
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Thanks so much for the review, Liis! I’m grateful beyond words. And I’m very glad you dug the humor and the heart — I really wanted to build the core of the narrative around this tragic little family and their shared pain.
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Thank you! it’s been really interesting to get a bit more background about the book as I’ve read through the comments you’ve been leaving others under this review… Thank you for interacting! 🙂
Soooo glad to hear that the sequel is a work in progress- this type oh horror thriller is exactly the thing to shake me as a reader and I look forward to reading more from you! 🙂
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Omg this is a great review Liz!! I love these kind of reviews ❤️ And especially THESE KIND OF BOOKS !
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Thanks Trang!
Aye- the book?- I hope it goes far and wide and successfully… what a great mix of elements and bound to keep any reader entertained! 🙂
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All I can think of is this creepy awful cover!!!!! HELP!!!! I love your review, though!
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hahaha, yeah, the cover is creepy but striking! 🙂
Thank you! ❤
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Thanks, Meggy! For what it’s worth, the spider is a nice spider. It lives inside a girl’s head and gives her excellent advice. It cheers her up when she’s feeling down. That’s why there’s a heart in the background!
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Good to know! I feel less scared of it now 🙂
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You had me at 4 slashers and that cover!! Ye I need to read this, great review 🙂
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😀 hahaha, easy-peasy, so, job done! 😀
So glad you want to read this one- it’s brilliant! 😉
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Thanks! The illustration was created by Aeron Alfrey, who designs cover art for metal bands.
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I scrolled over that cover as fast as I could 🙂 This one’s way to scary for me.. I’m scared of zombies AND from people knocking on doors. There has to be a plotline though, I wasn’t scared from The Ring as much as needed because I could just talk myself into seeing it for what it was. This sounds like a good one in the horror genre that I can recommend to others when they ask me for a really scary one, more horror than thriller :-). Great review love!
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Ah, know… I hate spiders but that red colour is so striking I can’t stop looking at it 🙂 I don’t blame you for scrolling over it though…
But definitely- a plotline is needed to make the story more engaging… and yes, def, if you have horror loving friends, this book will be sure to satisfy their reading taste- it’s a cracking read 🙂
Thank you 🙂 ❤
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Wow I’ve never read a book with four slashers before! That sounds like a lot of fun? 😂
And the creepy doll POV… Yeah that would give me nightmares for days!
I’m glad you stumbled upon this on Kim’s blog and ended up enjoying it so much. It’s definitely not my type of read but I very much loved reading your review 😉
Great post, Liz!
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Oh, it was a ton of fun… and thank you so much for reading my review, especially since it’s not your genre! 🙂 Appreciate it 🙂
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Slashers are not my jam in books or movies, but as usual I enjoyed reading your review. ☺
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Thank you 🙂 ❤
Yes, I think this one is probably a bit too graphic in parts… I can't imagine you enjoying it… hehehe 🙂
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Kim did make a solid case about this book and seeing you love it so much, I wonder how long it’ll take for the whole world to know about it now!! 😛 This sounds bloody awesome and maaaaaaan, I sort of love the sound of “eejit”. It even sounds like “idiot” hahahah Awesome review as always Liz! 😀
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Hahahaha, yes, we’re out in force with the book… man, it’s just brilliant AND I have a super interesting guest post form the author coming soon…;)
eejit is a brilliant word.. I was first introduced to it when I came to Ireland and wondered what it means… I can’t stop using it in real life… although that makes me sound like a mean b*tch! 😀
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haha so true about horror characters being idiots to be fair. hehe and yes that cover is striking (though I’m also freaked out by spiders, so had to scroll down past it pretty fast) While slashers aren’t my thing, the humour is clearly on point and I like how you describe it as an epic. But above all- your review is hilarious and so well done!!
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Love this! I had to chuckle because they are always idjits, but as you say, it is necessary. I have an absolute weakness for horror and dark stories, but slashers can be hit and miss. Of course, making toast is a traumatizing event daily 😉 I think I really, really want to read though!
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Hi, Danielle. I know what you mean about toast. I put my bread in the oven, and if I turn my back for one minute, the outcome is a charred ruin, a ghastly microcosm of my blackened, desiccated life. On the other hand, if I do it right, and put some butter and strawberry jam on it, it’s quite lovely.
Anyhow, for what it’s worth, my cinematic inspirations were Behind the Mask and The Cabin in the Woods — if you haven’t seen them, they’re phenomenal deconstructions of the slasher mythos.
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Haha love it and live it with the toast! I have seen and loved The Cabin in the Woods. I am now looking up Behind the Mask 😉
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hahaha, toast! brilliant… but yes, I think you should try this book some time because the plot is truly a LOT more than just the focus on slashers… it’s very character centred and there’s tons happening… 🙂
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I am going to add it to my list! The toaster terrifies me Liis! Every damn time it pops. I think it is all the tension from the built up anticipation. Same with canned biscuits when you pop them open :)P
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