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Faces of Fear: A Novel
by
John Saul
Fifteen-year-old Alison Shaw may not be beautiful, but she doesn’t really care: She’d much rather read a good book than primp in front of a mirror. But Alison’s gorgeous mother, Risa, knows that beauty can be a key to success and wishes only the best for her daughter–a wish that may come true after Risa marries widowed plastic surgeon Conrad Dunn. Conrad claims that he can...more
Mass Market Paperback, 416 pages
Published
July 28th 2009
by Ballantine Books
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15-year-old Alison Shaw enjoys her middle-class life with her parents, a real estate agent and a TV production manager. However, her world is turned upside down when her parents’ marriage dissolves after her father reveals he is gay. Alison’s mother marries acclaimed plastic surgeon Conrad Dunn, whose wife committed suicide after a boating accident left her perfect (albeit surgery-enhanced) face permanently scarred. Alison moves with her mother to Dunn’s mansion and has trouble adjusting to an a...more
Faces of Fear by John Saul, read August 2008
Saul's 35th Novel! Plastic surgery, My Space and homosexuality, oh my! Other themes in this book include: wealth, perfection, teens, online predators, self, perception, image, change and ego. This was not bad for a John Saul novel, not bad at all! Right away I found the story intriguing and Saul was able to keep my interest throughout the book, although as the story went on, it became just a little unbelievable. The one thing I am impressed...more
Saul's 35th Novel! Plastic surgery, My Space and homosexuality, oh my! Other themes in this book include: wealth, perfection, teens, online predators, self, perception, image, change and ego. This was not bad for a John Saul novel, not bad at all! Right away I found the story intriguing and Saul was able to keep my interest throughout the book, although as the story went on, it became just a little unbelievable. The one thing I am impressed...more
Like many of Saul’s works this story started with great potential. Unfortunately, also like many of Saul’s works this story plummeted after the beginning.
At first, the reader is drawn in by dysfunctional families dealing with crisis. The book holds potential for so much to happen within the family dynamic, but nothing does. Instead of dealing with the issues in a fun and dramatic way, the issues are passed over like they’re nothing. Characters move on without working through any ...more
At first, the reader is drawn in by dysfunctional families dealing with crisis. The book holds potential for so much to happen within the family dynamic, but nothing does. Instead of dealing with the issues in a fun and dramatic way, the issues are passed over like they’re nothing. Characters move on without working through any ...more
The only qualms I have with this book is when Conrad Dunn was doing surgery on a Filipino girl and the mother of the girl was saying "Si" for "yes". Ummm... hello? Do your research John Saul. Filipino's do not say "Si" at all. Now on to my review.
Faces of Fear gives you an insight to the dark side of the rich and the superficial. The book itself was not as creepy as the first book I've read by John Saul Perfect Nightmare. It dealt a lot more with Allison...more
Faces of Fear gives you an insight to the dark side of the rich and the superficial. The book itself was not as creepy as the first book I've read by John Saul Perfect Nightmare. It dealt a lot more with Allison...more
Faces of Fear was an average book for writer John Saul. Although I have not read many of his books, this book seemed to lack the luster of some of his other works. In Faces of Fear, Alison Shaw and her mother Rita are left reeling after the departure of Rita's husband who suddenly reveals to them that he is a gay man in love with someone. While their relationship remains amicable, both are left hurting and looking to put their lives back together. Enter Conrad Dunn, a prominent and wealthy p...more
This book wasn't bad. It kept my interest and I read it quicky because I wanted to know what woud happen. I had a pretty good idea early on of how everything woud resolve, but thought it possible there coud be a twist. The issue of plastic surgery and young girls being so obsesssed with perfection, they undergo these surgeries before they're even fully grown (and parents let them) was intriguing and disturbing. The ending was a litte disappointing for me in that I just didn't think it quite m...more
I have been a John Saul fan for several years, but a few years ago, decided to stop reading his books because they were so dark. When I saw this at the library, I decided to give him another chance. This book was a refreshing change from most of his other books. (Good kid moves to a place inhabited by evil spirit. People are very mean to kid. Kid is possessed by evil spirit. Lots of gory deaths and carnage. Kid dies. Evil spirit waits to claim next vicitm. The end.) I think maybe John Saul may...more
John Saul is one of my all time favourite writers (and I would not consider myself a huge fan of the horror genre in general). I think I just have a morbid fascination with his stories and the way things never end happily. Maybe that's why I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as I did his other books. Don't get me wrong, the writing is fantastic, he really is a natural story teller. But this book ended happily. Sure lots of people died in disgusting and completely unnecessary ways, but in the ...more
Hard to believe that Faces of Fear is John Saul's thirty-fifth novel. He published his first novel in 1977 and about five years later I started reading his books and have been a loyal fan since loving each thrill along the way.
The latest one, Faces of Fear, did not disappoint me whatsoever. It was different from your ordinary thriller as it was more psychological but it was full of suspense and creepiness which is exactly what I've come to expect and look forward to when I crack open...more
The latest one, Faces of Fear, did not disappoint me whatsoever. It was different from your ordinary thriller as it was more psychological but it was full of suspense and creepiness which is exactly what I've come to expect and look forward to when I crack open...more
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WOW!!!! I really needed to read something with this caliber. This is my first with John Soul. I would not hesitate reading others by this author. Right from the very first few pages he had my attention and I wanted to give this book more. Talk about the " Rich and Famous?" The one confusion I had was, after Margot's so called "Run in with the Blades," and Conrad had done the surgery, why was she left with so much scaring? If he was that good why leave her that way. W...more
This book was very good! Not quite the exact story that the back of the cover reads but close. Very suspenseful. If you like John Saul books, you won't be disappointed.
I read his books back in the 80's. This is the first one I have read in awhile. Good story - he dealt with the issue with kids being online and giving out too much information.
I could predict some of the plot after while but still a page turner towards the end.
I read his books back in the 80's. This is the first one I have read in awhile. Good story - he dealt with the issue with kids being online and giving out too much information.
I could predict some of the plot after while but still a page turner towards the end.
If you are looking for one of John Saul's supernatural horror books, this is not for you. The horror in this book comes from what people can really do to each other, although in this case it is fiction. The main character is a teenager named Allison whose mother marries a renowned plastic surgeon after discovering her first husband is gay (an unusual twist for Saul, but well done). They move to Beverly Hills and have trouble adjusting to the shallowness of people there. It also appears Dr. S...more
Okay, John Saul is considered by many to be a master at penning thrillers, and he's turned out some really great fiction over the years, but Faces of Fear missed the mark a bit. The concept is intriguing and, granted, there are parts of the book that grabbed me, but if you haven't read any of his books yet, skip this one and grab a copy of The Devil's Labyrinth instead. You won't be disappointed, I promise.
Everyone likes caterpillars. But they like butterflies better. Interesting book on plastic surgery. John Saul did a good job building up, but the rest of the book was a let down. I felt like he rushed through it all...and everything else was kind of predictable. Conrad's obsession reminded me of Buffalo Bill from Silence of the lambs. Good read....But I wish it wasnt so rushed towards the end.
I wish I could write books like John Saul. Even though I didn't like this book, Saul writes in such a way that I had to finish it just to find out what happened. It is violent with a most unlikely plot (at least I hope it's unlikely) but Saul is a master at what he does. If you're a Saul fan, you will probably enjoy this but it wasn't for me.
A teen who is getting improvement surgery on her face from her plastic surgeon stepfather realizes she is becoming the image of his ex-wife. -update- this is what it said on the book jacket but the story didn't go this way at all. It was poorly written, rambling, nothing happened for 7/8 of the book, and read like a chick lit. Dud.
A great book.. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.. It was a predictable book that obviously held no surprises.. The story interested me as to why the psycho was killing the young ladies.. When the author explicitly answered that question, the action carried the story for the books remainder--an enjoyable read..
Not the best from John Saul. After reading numerous books by this author, I found it to be very easy to figure out. I knew what was going to happen even before I was half way through the book. This is mediocre, especially for this author. I'm looking forward to his newest book, coming out sometime this year.
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It was a little predictable, but it was still a great book. It really makes you think about all of the information that is out there on the web, and that you really need to be careful who you share your information with. There were references to MySpace and Facebook which really made me think about what people can see and what they can do with the information they can find.
I enjoyed this book, it was a page turner for me. I thought it was fairly obvious where the story was going but that didn't stop me from flipping those pages. This was my first John Saul novel and I'll be reading more for sure!
This was a pretty good, creepy book. That's what I have come to expect from John Saul. The plot was very predictable, so that took away some of the suspense. It was a quick read. Definitely not Saul at his creepy best, though.
I have read every book John Saul has ever written. In fact I look forward to a new one coming out, but this one was a HUGE disappointment. What a bummer. If you haven't already read it, don't waste your time...
This book had a very modern day storyline, with all the myspace references and superficial beauty. However, the plot was somewhat predictable. Parts of the book also made my skin crawl because they were so graphic. Some people love that, not me.
I haven't read John Saul for a very, very long time. This book was better than most of his I remember, and better yet I listened to the audio version. Very suspenseful and disturbing, the missing star in my rating was because I was kind of unimpressed with the ending/reveal of the killer. Too obvious for me.
This is my third John Saul book, the first two being The Homing and Shadows. I would put this book maybe not quite as high as those, altough I found this a very good read. The story moved at a good pace, and som intriguing turns. I found that the characters developed quite nicely, mostly Alison and Doctor Dunn. Saul does a good job building tension, so that by the end you're usually dragged through the proverbial wringer. The story deals with the subjects of vanity, beauty, and the lengths that ...more
So many twists and turns. This is a page turner nd you will not be able to put it down. This is simply amazing. I love this book. It will absolutely scare you to the bone. Amazing.
My first look at John Saul came from this book. I loved it! He is now one of my top favorites. I'll read him every time he writes a new book. Pick yourself up a copy; you won't be sorry.
I liked this storyline...quick and easy read. However, the plot kind of unraveled itself not 1/2 to 3/4 the way into the book, so it ended up being predictable by the end.
This book is very sick and twisted. A little gruesome, but good. Actually, it's pretty disgusting at times now that I think about it. Overall, I liked it and am glad I read it.
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John Saul was born in Pasadena, California on February 25, 1942, and grew up in Whittier where he graduated from Whittier High School in 1959. He attended several colleges—Antioch, in Ohio, Cerritos, in Norwalk, California, Montana State University and San Francisco State College, variously majoring in anthropology, liberal arts, and theater, but never obtaining a degree.
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