Rating: 
Summary: No good deed goes unpunished...(mellion108 from Michigan)
Review: Dan, Megan, and Nikki Powell are returning home from holiday in a horrible blizzard when they spot a lone figure in the blinding snow. Dan stops to pick up the stranger in hopes of lending a helping hand. However, as soon as Brand--a name that becomes more symbolic as the novel progresses--enters the car, all three Powells feel his power in different ways, especially once Brand starts asking them for "a moment of your time." Dan soon stops the car and forces the man out.
Of course, this is the world of horror, so Brand doesn't simply go away. He begins to haunt each family member, preying on his or her darkest fears and self doubts. Megan begins to lose her mind. Dan sees Brand as symbolizing the very thing that threatens his abilities as family protector and as a man. Nikki? Well, teenage Nikki gets in touch with her inner nymph.
This was my first Lebbon novel, and I've already purchased a few more. His writing is wonderful, and he manages to present some very descriptive images. My major complaint with this mass market paperback is that Leisure did not take enough time to edit it well. There are numerous (stress on numerous) typographical and grammatical errors. While I can overlook the occasional error, the number of errors in this book was very distracting. I found myself being pulled right out of the story. I don't know if the hardcover edition is better. Regardless, this is a good story by a very promising writer.
Rating:
Summary: A supernatural Cape Fear!
Review: Driving home through a fierce blizzard, Dan and Megan, accompanied by their teenage daughter Nikki, spot a man standing in the middle of a dark country road, seemingly having materialized out of nowhere. Offering him a ride, the family quickly comes to regret their act of generosity -- Brand, as the man calls himself, unnerves them all with his strange demeanor and stranger mutterings. When the high strung Megan can't stand it any longer, they literally eject him from their car. Shaken, they resume their trip, leaving Brand to fend for himself on the nearly deserted stretch of road. In the days that follow, Brand infiltrates their minds and
lives, seeming to shadow their every move. Megan becomes convinced that Brand is spying on her through the eyes of insects and animals, Dan has an altercation with him in a local tavern, and Nikki spots him haunting a music studio where she and her band are making a recording. At first a minor irritation, Brand slowly ups the ante, sadistically torturing the unfortunate trio. A supernatural take on John D. MacDonald's The Executioners, the well-executed Face chronicles the disintegration of a family under attack from within and without. Dan, Megan and Nikki have lots of emotional baggage, most of it originating in a rape Megan suffered six years before. Megan is paranoid, and has retreated into religion, Dan has been unmanned by his perceived inability to protect his wife. Estranged from each other, they are also losing touch with their daughter, who is dealing with her emerging sexuality. Seemingly peering into their souls, Brand exploits these weaknesses to wreak his revenge. At first, it's hard to tell whether Brand actually exists,or is
something that the family has conjured out of its misery. In fact, until he acts against their friends and acquaintances, one might easily assume that he exists only in their imaginations. Regardless of his origins or corporeality, it's disquieting to watch his escalating attacks. It's also disquieting that Lebbon offers no easy explanations or outs. Asked "Why?" by Dan, Brand replies, "Sometimes bad things happen to good people." Even as Brand is seemingly dispatched, one senses he's merely stepped offstage, waiting for another opportunity to wreak havoc. Intense and affecting, Face will seize and hold your attention from the opening paragraph to the end. A writer blessed with extraordinary gifts, Lebbon's chief talents lie in exploring the darker moments of everyday life, and in making readers feel his character's pain and despair. A true disciple of the dark, Lebbon's imagery wrings true fear from his audience.
Rating: 
Summary: When bad things happen to good people
Review: During a blinding snowstorm, a family of three stops to pick up a hitchhiker called Brand. Then he asks them for another favor, one which they can't deliver. Discomfited by his conversation, they eject him from the car. But they haven't seen the last of Brand, nor will he leave their minds. Each becomes obsessed with him in his or her own way. Dan becomes preoccupied with thoughts of protecting his family, haunted by an attack on his wife years ago, and is driven to acts of violence of which he never thought himself capable. Megan, a religious woman, thinks of Brand as a devil who watches her through the eyes of wild creatures. And daughter Nikki finds herself attracted to him even as he terrifies her. Lebbon's masterful handling of family dynamics and his understanding of the things which threaten them puts him in league with Steve and Melanie Tem, the premier writers of familial horror. The story relies more on psychological terror and suspense, and when it does escalate into violence, it isn't gratuitous - which isn't to say it's not intense. My one small disappointment came from the unanswered questions at the end, where we're only given hints of the larger picture. I think I would have liked to know just a little bit more. Still, better to err on the side of mystery.
Rating:
Summary: When bad things happen to good people
Review: During a blinding snowstorm, a family of three stops to pick up a hitchhiker called Brand. Then he asks them for another favor, one which they can't deliver. Discomfited by his conversation, they eject him from the car. But they haven't seen the last of Brand, nor will he leave their minds. Each becomes obsessed with him in his or her own way. Dan becomes preoccupied with thoughts of protecting his family, haunted by an attack on his wife years ago, and is driven to acts of violence of which he never thought himself capable. Megan, a religious woman, thinks of Brand as a devil who watches her through the eyes of wild creatures. And daughter Nikki finds herself attracted to him even as he terrifies her. Lebbon's masterful handling of family dynamics and his understanding of the things which threaten them puts him in league with Steve and Melanie Tem, the premier writers of familial horror. The story relies more on psychological terror and suspense, and when it does escalate into violence, it isn't gratuitous - which isn't to say it's not intense. My one small disappointment came from the unanswered questions at the end, where we're only given hints of the larger picture. I think I would have liked to know just a little bit more. Still, better to err on the side of mystery.
Rating: 
Summary: NOT AS SCARY OR SUSPENSFUL AS IT COULD'VE BEEN!!!
Review: FACE is the first novel that I've read by Tim Lebbon, and I have to admit to being somewhat disappointed. This is the story of the Powell family, and it starts off with them (Dan, Megan and their teenage daughter, Nikki) driving home from vacation during a snowstorm. Within a few miles of their destination, they see a hitchhiker standing out alongside of the highway and decide to be good Samaritans by offering him a lift. In less than five minutes, the dark, handsome man, who calls himself Brand, manages to anger and scare both Dan and Megan by asking for a moment of their time and by making lewd suggestions to their daughter. They immediately stop the SUV and tell Brand to get out, not caring if he lives or dies, praying that they'll never see him again. No such luck! Brand will now haunt their minds (Nikki's thoughts are more sexual in nature) and begin to slowly chisel away at the family structure by attacking them at their weakest points. For Dan, it has to do with the guilt he feels over the attack of his wife, Megan, several years before in the city, and he being unable to prevent it. Megan, on the other hand, has turned to God with a religious fever, believing that He will protect her against any harm. Brand intends on demonstrating just how weak and vulnerable they actually are. As far as Nikki goes, he plans to fulfill her secret sexual desires, though she may find it to be more of a nightmare than a hot fantasy. Before the end of the novel is reached, Brand will have terrorized the family by killing off their few friends, pushing them to the brink of madness, and by making them wish they'd given him a brief moment of their time. FACE started off as an intriguing premise, but by the end of the third chapter I realized that I didn't like the Powell family, nor did I care about the things being done to them. In fact, I didn't like any of the characters in the book, except for maybe Brand. I thought Dan, Megan and Nikki did some really stupid things, almost as if they were brain dead. One example that stands out is when Dan beats our villain with a pool cue at the local Pub because he hears Brand's voice in his mind, making sexual comments about Nikki. The whole incident rang untrue for me. Another is when Dan goes into the woods surrounding their home at night with a baseball bat to hunt for the mysterious Brand. He doesn't even know if the guy is out there watching the house, or whether he can actually take this evil person in fair fight. And speaking of Brand, the reader is never sure if he's a human monster or a demonic being of some kind. Because of this, I found the novel's grand finale to be confusing with more questions being presented than answers. I hate it when that happens. FACE isn't the worse novel I've ever read, but it's also far from the best. If you want to read it, my suggestion is to wait for the paperback to come out.
Rating: 
Summary: Overwritten and Repetitive
Review: Having mildly enjoyed Lebbon's "The Nature of Balance", I decided to give "Face" a try. Well, the beginning is quite gripping and I loved the concept of a family picking up a strange hitchhiker in the middle of a snow storm. It seems that the author started writing with this idea and didn't know where to go with it. Spelling errors aside, Lebbon repeats many of the character's thoughts over and over. Yes, we get the point, you don't need to tell us again! Anyway, having no growth with the characters and a disappointing ending, I cannot recommend this book. Tim Lebbon also seems like he's holding back with scenes, taking the easy way out with his conservative scares and sexual themes. Richard Laymon, Bentley Little, and Tom Piccirilli do it much better.
Rating:
Summary: Overwritten and Repetitive
Review: Having mildly enjoyed Lebbon's "The Nature of Balance", I decided to give "Face" a try. Well, the beginning is quite gripping and I loved the concept of a family picking up a strange hitchhiker in the middle of a snow storm. It seems that the author started writing with this idea and didn't know where to go with it. Spelling errors aside, Lebbon repeats many of the character's thoughts over and over. Yes, we get the point, you don't need to tell us again! Anyway, having no growth with the characters and a disappointing ending, I cannot recommend this book. Tim Lebbon also seems like he's holding back with scenes, taking the easy way out with his conservative scares and sexual themes. Richard Laymon, Bentley Little, and Tom Piccirilli do it much better.
Rating:
Summary: I may be a little too modern for this
Review: I may be spoiled by the writings of Lee, Laymon, Ketchum, Lansdale, Barker, McCammon, and King himself. These authors pull no punches. They keep me turning the pages, in awe of their fast paced story line. And even when they slow down, I am never bored by their writing. The book in question, Face, was a dull, tedious story with little action. Sure, their was the characterization, and I applaud that. But I need something more. Something to make me root for, or against. This book had an intriguing villian, per se, but as I turned the pages, rather slowly, I found myself not caring. It was a struggle to get into this book. And I find that disappointing because I have been a fan of Lebbon's short fiction. I didn't read 'nature of balance', so this was my first experience with a novel of his. It made me think of the writings of Poe or Lovecraft. And this may be my downfall. I cannot read these authors. Too drab. So I am putting down the guy by comparing him to some of the greatest. He has talent. This book, however, ceased to grab me by the throat and force me to read it from page one to the end.
Rating:
Summary: I may be a little too modern for this
Review: I may be spoiled by the writings of Lee, Laymon, Ketchum, Lansdale, Barker, McCammon, and King himself. These authors pull no punches. They keep me turning the pages, in awe of their fast paced story line. And even when they slow down, I am never bored by their writing. The book in question, Face, was a dull, tedious story with little action. Sure, their was the characterization, and I applaud that. But I need something more. Something to make me root for, or against. This book had an intriguing villian, per se, but as I turned the pages, rather slowly, I found myself not caring. It was a struggle to get into this book. And I find that disappointing because I have been a fan of Lebbon's short fiction. I didn't read 'nature of balance', so this was my first experience with a novel of his. It made me think of the writings of Poe or Lovecraft. And this may be my downfall. I cannot read these authors. Too drab. So I am putting down the guy by comparing him to some of the greatest. He has talent. This book, however, ceased to grab me by the throat and force me to read it from page one to the end.
Rating: 
Summary: Lebbon ? Face
Review: I'm not a discriminating reader. I'll read anything and I rarely put anything down unfinished. This is one of the few exceptions in the last few years. Face is tedious at best. And I don't particularly mind tedious if there's some decent writing behind it. Sadly, Face wasn't compelling enough for me to finish. Its quite obvious that Lebbon has talent. He's got enough praise and awards to make me think he's definitely got some talent going for him. But sadly, Face doesn't display any of it. Sure, his characters are decent but I had a hard time liking or empathizing with any of them. Brand, our intrepid bad guy, is just a mystery. He's not well developed enough to hate or even to scare the reader. I've got a copy of The Nature of Balance by Lebbon on my "to read" shelf. Its been there awhile. Having attempted Face, it might just be there for a while longer.
|
